Supernova
by ThriLLer89
Summary: "Several people believed we had been 'fooling around' since last year, others believed that I pitied Helga. That rumor annoyed me." AxH
1. It all started last Halloween

**Howdy to everyone out there in Hey Arnold land! I'm not really new to the world of fan fiction, but this is my first official Hey Arnold story. I watched the series since it first came on in 1996. (I was 7! Oh the memories..) I've always loved the diabolic relationship shared between Arnold and Helga. After much debate, I've decided to dabble in Hey Arnold fan fiction and truth be told, I'm rather nervous about it (mainly because I still picture them as 9 years old)... But I certainly hope you enjoy my efforts!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold or any of it's characters. That cred goes to the BRILLIANT Mr. Craig Bartlett. ;)**

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_**Supernova**__ (n): A massive star that undergoes a sudden, extreme increase in brightness across the electromagnetic spectrum, followed by a more gradual decrease lasting from several days to several months._

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**Helga's POV:**

"Yeah yeah, I'll be there in a bit Phoebs… I just have something I need to do first." I forcefully shut my phone and put it back in my jeans pocket. Off in the distance towards the western sky, the sun was falling behind a curtain of darkness and the moon was slowly replacing it. Even though the harsh rays of the summer sun were dimming the blistering heat still remained, causing small beads of sweat to form on my brow. A few blocks later I found myself ringing an all too familiar doorbell and waiting nervously on the stoop. Just as I was about to give up and continue on my way, the doorknob turned slightly to the right and the door slowly opened followed by a stampede of cats, dogs… and a familiar little pink pig. An elderly man stood in the doorway and gave me an awkward stare before cracking into a smile.

"Well if it isn't Arnolds little friend!" he mused. "Shortman was trying to get in touch with you. Where'd ya run off to?"

"Is he here or what?" I asked a little more harshly than I intended. I softened my expression a little "it's kind of important"

"He won't be home until later. Ya see, Shortman got himself-"

"Fabulous" I cut him off. "Just don't tell him I came by… I gotta go." I stomped away angrily.

I got my phone back out from my pocket and dialed Phoebe's number. On the third ring she answered "Are you here yet?" she practically whispered.

"Hmm… lets take a survey on that Phoebs. DOES IT LOOK LIKE I'M THERE!"

"Sorry" she squeaked. "Are you still on your way?"

I glanced up at a street sign before making a right at the corner. "Yeah… five minutes. See you in a few" I let out dramatically loud sigh of frustration, kicking a small pebble that lay in front of me. "_Stupid football head_" I grumbled. A string of incoherent obscenities continued to flow from my mouth as I walked with my head down, I nearly missed the house I was looking for. With another loud sigh I rang the doorbell. A tall raven haired girl answered the door with a bemused expression shadowing her face.

"…..Helga?" she gave me a once over before meeting my eyes again "You aren't the pizza boy" she shook her head a few times before it hit her. "Which means you're back!" she flung her arms around me before squeezing my midsection in a tight hug.

"You got that right princess" I smirked.

"Did you bring your stuff? Come inside! The girls are all here." Rhonda grabbed my arm and dragged me through the door. "Girls! I have a surprise!" she clapped her hands rhythmically before pulling me in to the living room with the rest of the girls.

"HELGA!" everyone except Phoebe had the same confused expression that Rhonda had just moments ago.

Before I could even blink Sheena, Nadine, Phoebe, Lila and Rhonda had me in a tightly knit group hug.

_Ugh_…

"Okay! ALRIGHT!" I pushed them back. "You act like I'm back from the dead" I sat down on the plush leather couch, quickly joined by the others who had gathered around me like I was the savior himself. "Why are you all looking at me like that?" I was suddenly feeling uneasy.

"Do you blame us for being a little intrigued by your presence?" Rhonda sat on the arm of the couch. "You disappeared for a whole summer!"

"We're ever so happy to see you" Lila gushed. "You've missed out on several of our oh so charming sleepovers"

"You simply _must _tell us about your summer!" Rhonda's arms flailed around dramatically.

"If we're here to have a sleepover, then lets just stick with sleepover activities." I grabbed my bag and headed for the bathroom. "Sleepovers normally don't focus on my summer vacation. Capiche?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Oh come on Helga!" Nadine grabbed my bag and tossed it on the floor. "You know were going to get it out of you one way or another" the other girls nodded in agreement.

"There's nothing to tell, really" I shrugged. "I went to California." I sat back on the couch and propped my feet up on the coffee table. "You know, the trip that Principal Reed talked about last spring?" I snuck that in before the girls could make any assumptions.

"The west coast college campus tour" Phoebe supplied. "It was only offered for future Juniors and Seniors." the girls did a collective 'ohhhh'.

"So why didn't you just tell us?" Sheena sat down next to Lila and began undoing her braids.

"Yeah.. Why the secrecy?" Rhonda frowned.

I tugged on the end of one of my pigtails before shrugging nonchalantly. "Because _he_ went on the trip too.." all movement ceased in the room as everyone hung on my last words.

"You mean-"

"Yep" I bit my lip and nodded. I had gone on the trip with my boyfriend of nearly six months.

"Wow." Rhonda was actually left speechless.

"That must have been ever so romantic!" Lila tilted her head as Sheena continued to braid her locks.

"I didn't know you two were that serious" Nadine still seemed bewildered.

"We just looked at college campuses.. Its not like we got hitched! Crimeny." I stood up. "I need to use the can" I announced. "Try and act a little less surprised when I get back" and with that, I walked towards the bathroom. When they thought I was far enough away, the whispers began..

"_I just can't believe it!"_ Rhonda gasped. "_I mean, I'm still getting used to them actually BEING together.._"

"_They make an ever so cute couple!_" Lila defended.

"_But really… Wolfgang and HELGA? It makes no sense!"_

I shook my head a laughed before closing the bathroom door behind me. I couldn't agree more with Rhonda… How DID I end up with someone like Wolfgang?

I guess it all started last Halloween..

* * *

_***Flashback***_

"_What do you think Helga?" Phoebe emerged from her bathroom in her costume._

"_Well Phoebs, I will say you make one heck of a devil" I adjusted the halo on top of my head. "Gerald is gonna flip his lid!" Phoebe suddenly blushed a bright crimson. "Guys are totally into that whole 'good girl gone bad' thing." I tossed an arm over her shoulders. "Now you need the attitude to back it up. Satan doesn't have manners mind you."_

"_That goes both ways" she smirked. "Angels don't shove people into trashcans or threaten to shove their limbs up certain… places"_

"_No sweat Phoebs. I radiate sweetness!" we both paused before busting out in a fit of laughter. I glanced down at my watch and noticed that we were almost twenty minutes late. "Oh crap! We better get going… Arnold and Gerald are probably wondering where we are" Phoebes mom dropped us off in front of Wolfgang's house just a few minutes after nine. A few of our fellow classmates sat on the steps and greeted us as we walked past them._

"_There they are" Phoebe pointed towards the back of the living room and waved towards the teenage boys. Gerald was dressed as Jimi Hendrix, and Arnold was dressed as Indiana Jones. As they got closer Phoebes blush turned a deeper shade of red._

_We pushed our way through the crowd of teenagers so we could meet them halfway. In the blink of an eye, I suddenly collided with someone else and I was knocked to the floor._

"_Watch it!" I growled. I looked up to find Wolfgang looking down at me curiously. _

"_Uh.." he began to reach down to help me up, but Arnold suddenly knelt down next to me and offered his hand._

"_Watch where you're going Wolfgang!" Arnold glared at him before grabbing my arm and pulling me up. "Are you okay?"_

"_I'm fine football head… Crimeny." I brushed myself off and took one last look at Wolfgang._

"_Whatever losers." he pushed Arnold out of his way._

"_He's so rude" Arnold looked slightly irritated. "He shouldn't treat a girl like that."_

"_Are you talking about me or yourself?" I smirked._

"_Ha ha." he deadpanned. "Come on.. I think Gerald and Phoebe ditched us" he grabbed my wrist and pulled me through the crowd. _

"_You know Arnold" I still trailed a few steps behind him as he pulled me upstairs "People are going to wonder what we're doing upstairs at a house party" he promptly froze and turned his head until his gaze met mine._

"_Let them keep guessing." he grinned._

_He knocked on several doors before pulling us inside a bedroom. He turned to face me, a grin still plastered on his face. "You ready for this?" he took a step closer and tipped his Indiana Jones hat off his head, revealing his small blue hat underneath._

"_I think the question is… are YOU ready football head?" I unclipped the halo from my hair which cause several strands of hair to fall loosely around my face._

_He dug inside his pocket and produced a small box which he handed to me. "Your call.." he smirked through half lidded eyes._

"_How does…" I held the box up "Slapjack sound?"_

"_Oh Helga, you know I ALWAYS beat you at this game… will you ever learn?"_

_I hopped on to the bed and patted the spot across from me. "There's a first time for everything" I opened the box of cards. "Are you going to stand there all night or are we going to play cards?"_

_Without another word, he joined me on the other side of the bed, crossing his legs in front of him. I dealt the cards and we began flipping them frantically._

"_How long do you think it'll take Gerald and Phoebe to find us?" I continued to flip my cards._

"_Depends. OUCH" Arnold shook his freshly slapped hand before continuing to flip his cards. "We might find them in another closet." he glanced up at me. _

"_Ew. Don't remind me- OUCH!" I growled. Arnold let out a victorious 'HA!'_

"_Don't look at me Arnoldo! It distracts me!- OUCH" I flicked a card at his forehead._

"_Face it Helga, I'm better at slapjack" _

"_You are such a bonehead" I yelped one final time as he slapped my hand out of the way, and won… again. Grrrr…_

"_How about I get us some snacks?" Arnold swung his legs over the side of the bed. "I don't recommend the punch though… Ludwig came in with a bottle of Jack.." he cringed._

"_Lets stick with popcorn balls" I wiggled my eyebrows. "Or lets get crazy… CANDY CORN!"_

"_Whatever you say Helga" he opened the door. "I'm gonna see if I can find Phoebe and Gerald while I'm down there. Be back in five"_

_I laid back into the mattress and sighed. On the ceiling was a poster of a swimsuit model with a sultry look on her face. I grimaced slightly before turning on to my side. On the nightstand was a picture of Wolfgang and his parents at one of his football games._

"_Who's room IS this?" I sat up and finally noticed all the trophies displayed on the shelves. I stood up and studied some of the trophies.. Most were from football and wrestling. He also had a framed newspaper article hung on the wall next to his football photo. The doorknob began rattling and a dim light began bleeding inside._

"_What are you doing in my room!" Wolfgang stood in the doorway with a bucket in his hand. "Did that fall make you deaf? I said: What are you doing in my room!" he closed the door behind him and set the bucket near his windowsill._

"_I was just admiring your handiwork" I pointed to the pictures and trophies._

"_Yeah, well get out." he growled. "I need this room. If you and your little football headed boyfriend want to fool around, do it in a closet like normal people."_

"_Okay, first of all… ew. And secondly, Arnold isn't my boyfriend." I crossed my arms hastily in front my chest. "and third, what are you doing with that bucket?"_

"_If you must know" he smirked. "This window gives me perfect access to the backyard. And this bucket is full of water balloons.. Minus the water."_

_I stepped a little closer and peeked inside the bucket. "What'd you put in them?" I picked one up and studied it._

"_Pickle juice" he shrugged._

"_Sick!….. I love it." I held the balloon to my chest. "I want a piece of this" I gazed out the window at the partygoers in the backyard. "Are you doing them one at a time, or rapid fire?" I began counting the number of people outside "You'd need to throw at least a balloon every three and a half seconds in order to nail everyone."_

"_Why Helga, where have you been all my life?" he joked. "I guess I'll let you help me out… this one time." he set the bucket between us and grabbed several balloons. "On my count, we start throwing" both of us held our arms up and aimed. "three… two… ONE!" we both started rapidly throwing the balloons on the innocent bystander's below. After about a minute of continuous pelting, we ran out of balloons._

_We both sat on the floor, laughing like hyenas. "That was epic!" I rolled on the floor. "I got Harold in the face!"_

"_You have good aim!" he lightly slugged my shoulder. "Why haven't we teamed up before?" our laughter died down and we sat side by side underneath the window. _

"_Maybe because you used to bully me and my friends?" I kicked my leg out. "You even gave me a black eye once"_

"_I did?" he rubbed his chin in deep thought. "Well, I've moved on from physical torment… the mental game is where its at!" he nudged me with his shoulder._

"_Is that supposed to put me at ease?" I scoffed. "I'd rather not hang out with someone who's going to berate me at all opportunities."_

"_I wouldn't do that to you… you're way too cute for that." Wolfgang's eyes widened when he realized what he just said. Both of us looked away and coughed awkwardly. _

"_wow.." I broke the silence. "I never thought in a million years I would hear you say that to me." I suddenly felt extremely bold and glanced over at him. His whole face had practically turned into a tomato. I grabbed his arm and shook him slightly. "You okay?"_

"_Y-yeah…" chuckled nervously. "I better get back downstairs.." he hopped up and darted towards the door._

"_Wait!" I grabbed his arm and forced him to face me. "Next time you need a partner in crime… call me up" I patted the back of his hand and smiled. "See ya Wolfgang.."_

_He smiled nervously and waved before hurrying back downstairs. I found myself leaning against the door and let out a breath that I hadn't realized I was holding. "Wow.." I smirked._

_Not even a moment later, Arnold opened the door while balancing two plates of food in his left hand. "Hey! Sorry it took me so long. Lila caught me at the snack table and started telling me some joke about a cow…yeah, I dunno." he chuckled. "Helga, are you okay?" I sat on the edge of Wolfgang's bed with a dazed expression._

"_Arnold…" I let out a long sigh "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."_

* * *

_***Present Day***_

I stared at my reflection in the mirror and felt a small smile creep on my face. I may have never imagined dating Wolfgang, but it had been some of the best months of my life. We hadn't officially started dating until February twenty fifth… The day of our first kiss. When we went public with out relationship, many people thought it was some sort of early April Fools joke. Arnold was one of the first people to ask me if I was pulling some major prank. When he realized it was no joke, he seemed to distance himself from me. Wolfgang knew about my past with Arnold… heck, everyone including Arnold knew about it. It had been years since I had felt that way about him. For the longest time Wolfgang assumed my heart still belonged to Arnold, which wasn't the case at all.

"Helga?" Phoebes voice called on the other side of the door. "Rhonda wanted to get ice cream at Slausens. Are you coming?"

I opened the door and leaned against the doorframe. "I could go for some ice cream"

As the group of us walked towards our favorite hangout, the questions continued to fly in my direction. Most of them I avoided by shrugging or pretending I didn't hear the question.

"Did you get any of my messages about Arnold?" Phoebe whispered.

I stopped dead in my tracks.

"What about Arnold?" I seethed.

"He was trying to contact you all summer" her gaze fell towards the sidewalk.

"I don't know why.." I scoffed. "He was the one who avoided me for the greater part of last year."

"But you told him you were going to help him with youth baseball camp this summer and-"

"I never promised him anything Phoebs!" I snapped. The others stared in confusion.

"How about we take it down a few decimals?" Rhonda opened the doors to Slausens.

We all took a seat in a booth and looked through our menus. The other girls kept exchanging glances every few moments before looking back at me.

"Do I have something on my face or what?" I dropped my menu on the table. "Care to share the wealth Phoebs?"

Rhonda sent her a 'don't you dare' look.

"Well.." she pulled nervously on her collar. "You see… we chose to come here for two reasons." she chuckled nervously. "We've been coming to Slaussens all summer because we always get served by-"

"Hey girls!" a friendly voice filled the room as a set of legs appeared next to the table. "What can I get for you? It must be your sleepover day." his eyes traveled from his pad of paper until they met mine.

Both of our jaws dropped slightly.

"Arnold?"

"Helga? What are you doing here?" he scratched the side of his head with his pencil.

"The last time I checked it was a free country football head. I can get ice cream if I want to"

His expression suddenly turned bitter. "Whatever you say Helga." he looked at the other girls and smiled. "What can I get for you guys?"

Everyone ordered and Arnold left the table. My focus immediately fell upon Rhonda and Phoebe. "So… thanks for dropping a dirty bomb on me."

"I'm sorry Helga." Phoebe patted my shoulder. "I didn't realize things were bitter between you two"

"_YA THINK!_" I growled. "and you, Benedict Rhonda.." I rolled my eyes. "I'm not even going to try and figure out your logic behind all of this."

"That's easy!" Nadine smirked. "She has a _huge_ crush on Arno-"

"That's quite enough Nadine!" she covered her best friends mouth before chuckling nervously. "The girl is delusional!"

"Listen princess." I leaned across the table. "I don't care if you like him… there's no need to hold back on account of me." Just as I sat back in my seat, Arnold arrived with our order. He gave each of the girls their ice cream and smiled. When he got to me his smile faded and he loudly set the ice cream in front of me with a thud.

"Thank you Arnold doll." Rhonda winked at him, tossing her long black hair over her shoulder.

"You're welcome." he nodded. "Is there anything else I can get you?"

"Actually.." I tugged on his sleeve. "You forgot my-"

"That's nice" Arnold shook my hand off of him before abruptly turning away.

"Oh my.." Lila covered her mouth. "I've never seen Arnold like that before… It's ever so unsettling."

"You must have really upset him" Sheena gave me sympathetic eyes.

Arnold went behind the counter and took off his apron and tossed it underneath the counter. "David, I'm taking my break!" He called into the back room.

I pushed my ice cream away from me and stood up "Yeah.. Uhh.. Enjoy your ice cream. I'll be back." And without hesitation, I followed Arnold out the back door.

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**A/N: okay everyone, there is chapter one for you! Some elements of the story may seem hazy right now, but I promise you that all will be revealed! You'll find out more about Arnold and Helga's past. And you'll see more of Wolfgang once they go back to school. I know you all probably want to immediately hate Wolfgang, but I don't want to portray him as TOO bad… he has a soft spot for Helga… and a sore spot with Arnold.**


	2. Flattered

**I'm already back with chapter two! Are you ready?**

**Also, major love to the people who read and reviewed the last chapter.**

**Disclaimer:… same as last time. Hey Arnold isn't mine.**

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**Arnold's POV:**

_***Flashback***_

_I was switching my books in between classes. It was an every day occurrence between fifth and sixth period. Me and Gerald would meet by our lockers before going to biology together. For some reason, today felt different. Gerald was running a few minutes late which was nothing out of the normal… it was everyone else that seemed different._

"_Hey Arnold." Rhonda leaned up against Geralds locker. _

"_Hey" I smiled. "What's up?" I closed my locker and turned the knob a few times._

"_I just wanted to return your notes." she reached inside her history book and pulled out a few sheets of paper. "Thanks again"_

"_No problem…"_

_Just as I was about to walk away, Rhonda leaned in closer. "Have you…. Heard?"_

"_Heard…what?" I shrugged._

"_About Helga! It's all over school Arnold… She-"_

"_ARNOLD!" Gerald came running around the corner. "DUDE!" he panted. "Helga…. Oh man. You have to SEE this!" _

"_Wha-? OOF" Gerald grabbed my wrist and dragged me around the corner where the Juniors usually congregated. We stopped abruptly in the middle of the crowded hallway. "What the heck is going on Gerald? We're going to be late for bio."_

"_My man, this is something that can't be explained." he grabbed my chin and turned my head forward._

_It took a moment to register in my mind what my eyes were actually seeing… Helga was leaning against a row of lockers which by itself wouldn't surprise me. It was her lips attached to Wolfgangs that caused my mind to explode._

"_mmm mmm mmmm." Gerald shook his head. "Something about that picture aint right."_

_The two broke apart and stared at each other with big cheesy grins. He leaned casually on the locker by her head, his other hand resting on her hip. The visual was overwhelming to everyone watching. People all around were whispering their confusion. I stood there awkwardly with my mouth hung open._

"_Helga?" I finally managed to speak. "A-and… WOLFGANG?" a few people turned to look at me. Most were nods of agreement…_

_Helga glanced over in our direction and her smile faded. She whispered something into Wolfgangs ear and began walking over to us. "Hey hair boy… football head." she smirked. "what's with the faces?" _

"_Wolfgang?" I scratched the side of my head. "Really?" With my peripheral vision, I could see Wolfgang watching us. "Is this some sort of early April Fools day prank?" Helga looked over her shoulder and waved at Wolfgang. "Helga!" I grabbed her shoulders. "Is this like.. For real?"_

"_First of all" her expression hardened. "DON'T touch me… EVER!" she slapped my hands harshly off her shoulders. "And second… it's not a joke football head. I'm dating Wolfgang"_

_Most of the students had began to clear the area and went to class. The only people left in the hallway were me, Gerald, Helga and Wolfgang. "Arnold, we're late.." Gerald tugged on my sleeve. "Come on."_

"_See you at lunch?" I said low enough for Wolfgang to miss._

"_Can't… I have plans with Wolfgang" she shrugged. "Later football head."_

_Without another word, she walked back over to Wolfgang and handed him her book bag. He slung it over his shoulder and wrapped his arm around her. I could have sworn I saw him give me a death glare before he went around the corner._

_By lunch time, everyone was buzzing about Wolfgang and Helga. Several people asked Phoebe if she knew anything was going on between them. She admitted she knew they connected at his Halloween party last year, but hadn't began a relationship until recently. Many people still remained unconvinced that it was serious. Wolfgang wasn't known for his long term relationships…_

"_Hey football face" Wolfgang approached me while I was waiting for the bus._

"_Yes Wolfgang?" I sighed. Somehow I knew this conversation wasn't going to end well._

"_Look, I know all about Helgas former little obsession with you." he pointed a finger at me. "and Helga is different from other girls I've dated…. I actually like her."_

"_What does this have to do with ME?" _

"_I'm trying to say, if you do ANYTHING to screw this up" he grabbed me by my collar and lifted me off my feet. "I'll make sure you don't live long enough to regret it."_

_He set me back on the ground and released me with a light shove. "I had no intention of screwing anything up Wolfgang." I adjusted my collar. "if Helga is happy, then I'm happy for her… Even if it's with you." I grimaced._

"_Just stay out of my way. Got it?" he advanced on me once again, pushing me against the bus stop with his forearm. "I waited MONTHS for her…"_

"_OKAY. Geez.." I struggled to get a full breath. "I won't bother you."_

"_Or her." he pressed a little harder._

"_But Helga is my friend!- OUCH.. Would you stop crushing me?" I finally managed to push him back. "Fine! I will 'stay away' from Helga…. Ugh" I gingerly rubbed my chest._

* * *

_***Present Day***_

I slumped against the wall behind Slausens and took a few deep breaths. Running into Helga was something I would have to face eventually, I know… but actually _seeing_ her was totally different than I had imagined.

"You didn't have to hide in the alley football head." Helga peeked her head out the back door before coming outside.

"Go eat your ice cream, Helga.." I muttered.

"Wow, something must have crawled up your butt and died. Here's a tip: cut the attitude." she walked over and kicked my shoe. "Can you at least LOOK at me when I'm yelling at you?" her tone became harsher.

"Why do you care if I talk to you?" I rolled my eyes. "You had no problem avoiding me all summer."

"I was in California you yutz."

"You really let the kids down at the community center." I stood up and dusted myself off. "I ended up having to ask Gerald to take your co-coaching position.."

"Listen, and listen good bucko." I took another step closer. "I didn't swear my soul to the community center. I chose my future over community service, SUE ME"

"Whatever helps you sleep at night Helga.." I scoffed. "But we both know this is about more than community service."

Her eyes darted around nervously. I let out a long sigh and studied her.. "where's your bow?" I reached up and brushed my fingers against the grey beanie placed on her head. The moment my hand touched her, her eyes became enraged. She glared down at me and promptly removed my hand.

"I'm a little too old now for my bow Arnold." she took a step back. "And it's none of your business anyway."

"Look Helga.. I don't like fighting like this. We're too old to be carrying on like we did in the fourth grade." at the mention of fourth grade, her shoulders tensed. "I'm really sorry about this whole fight between us…Why don't we… start with a clean slate. Start from the beginning?" I extended my hand. "Deal?"

After a moment of hesitation, her hand grabbed mine. "Fine… but don't think I'm going to stop calling you 'football head'." she shook my hand softly. "and I'm… ugh…. sorry too." she sighed "for bailing on you this summer."

"Apology accepted." I released her hand "Well, that was simple" I chuckled. "Why wasn't it this easy when we were younger?"

"Because I was young, headstrong and extremely lovesick." she struggled to hold back her laughter.

I glanced down at my watch and groaned "Sorry to break up this reunion, but I have to get back to work"

"Why _are_ you working here football head?" I grabbed the door and held it open for her as she went back inside.

"I want a car, and grandpa and grandma want me to earn it on my own so I can 'learn the value of hard work!'…" I gave my best impression of my grandpa. "and besides, I could use the extra cash.."

I peered over at the girls, whom had already finished their ice cream and were currently waiting on Helga. Rhonda was tapping her fingers impatiently against the table and checking her watch every few seconds.

"You better get back in there" I motioned towards the girls. "I think Rhonda is getting angina."

She glanced over towards Rhonda and snickered. "either that or she's having an aneurism." she jabbed my shoulder with her elbow "you must be digging all the attention from little miss princess." I could sense a hint of sarcasm.

"I wouldn't use the word 'enjoy' exactly." I chuckled. "more like… I'm _flattered_ by the attention."

"That's exactly what you told _me_..." both of our smiles slowly faded. "Uh.. Anyway, see you later football head" before I could oppose, Helga had already went back into the main dining area and sat next to Phoebe.

I retied my apron around my waist and went back to their table. "Here's your check" I set a small piece of paper in the middle of the table. "Pay up front when you're ready. See you girls at school on Monday?"

"Of course." Rhonda wiggled her fingers in a small wave. "See you Monday.." I made eye contact with her just for a split second, and she used the opportunity to wink at me seductively..

This was going to be a _long_ school year..

* * *

I had finished working around ten and had to call Gerald to give me a ride home. About halfway to my house Gerald waved his hand in my face.

"You okay Arnold? You're kinda spacing out.."

"I saw Helga tonight.. Rhonda and the girls came in for their slumber party ritual, and Helga was with them."

"_Helga_? You mean Helga Pataki? The girl who disappeared for a whole summer without so much as a phone call? The one who-"

"Yes Gerald. _That _Helga." I turned my attention to the buildings we were passing by "we talked a little bit.. And we decided to start fresh this year. No drama."

"My man, when it comes to you and Helga G. Pataki, there's no such thing as 'no drama'. That girl is the permanent thorn in your side."

"She's not so bad Gerald… you have to admit that she's toned down her 'bully' image over the years." we took another right turn and pulled up in front of the boarding house.

"A tiger doesn't change it's stripes just because it's dating the alpha male tiger, Arnold.." He put his car into park and crossed his arms. "When they break up, it'll be back to business as usual, and she'll be right back where she started."

"If you're implying what I _think_ you're implying.." I took a moment to glare at him ".. you're one hundred percent off base."

"I'm just sayin'.." he held his arms up defensively. "She loved you _passionately_ for what? Nine years? That sort of love doesn't just go away.."

I pushed the door open and put my feet out. "Look Gerald, I asked Helga a few years ago if she still felt that way, and she told me that she was honestly over me… and I believe her. It's not me and her that have a problem… it's all of you guys at school. You won't let it go when clearly _SHE_ has."

"Have _you_ let it go?" I knew exactly what he was asking, which kind of irritated me. I had dealt with so many people asking me if I returned Helgas feelings. It was Gerald who knew the specifics of what happened between me and Helga all those years ago, all the things that were _exchanged…_

"Good night Gerald." I stood up and closed the car door. I didn't have to answer Geralds question… He knew the answer already anyway.

"Hey Shortman!" Grandpa came down the stairs with a newspaper in his hand. "How was work?"

"Eh.."

"That bad?" he patted my head. "Just stick in there Arnold. You'll be glad you stuck it out when you have your own car." As I headed up the stairs, grandpa shouted "oh yeah, that girl with the one eyebrow came by here this afternoon looking for you."

"I caught up with her at Slaussens, but thanks grandpa." I went up to my room and locked the door behind me. I grabbed my remote and turned on the lights and flipped my couch out of the wall. I hung my legs over the side and laid down.

'_have you let it go?'_ Geralds voice kept repeating in my head. For me, there were no romantic feelings to 'let go' of… things between me and Helga were always strained because of her inability to accept her own feelings and to express them. But according to Gerald, that was my problem too which I _highly_ disagree with. I never woke up one day and said to myself: 'gee, I think I have the hots for Helga'. Though the rest of Hillwood High would do a collective 'I TOLD YOU SO!' if such a revelation were to happen, they're going to have to just forget about it… it's not happening.

"Hey Shortman, I'm off to bed." grandpa called out from the other side of the door.

"Good night grandpa" I listened to his footsteps creak down the hall. When his bedroom door closed behind him, I got up off the couch and went into my closet to grab my pajamas. On the top shelf sat a large brown box with the letters 'B.I.F.' written in black ink. That box has haunted me over the years. Every time I get into my closet, its like a reminder of the haunting bedlams I faced in the past. It was an emotional battle scar that I just… couldn't part with. I grabbed the box and pulled it down to the ground and quietly opened it. Inside of it were several different trinkets and books… I cracked open the book on the top and read the inscription

'_Dearest Arnold,_

_You're reading this most likely because temptation has overtaken you. I honestly don't blame you for being curious.. But in truth, you are reading this _**B**_ecause _**I F**_ailed. I failed to be myself. I spent so long burying my heart and soul in a fantasy world. These words that I'm writing cannot begin to express the deep sorrow I feel for the way this ordeal has panned out. I put you in a position that you didn't deserve to be in. Your kind soul is unable to hate me for my actions… it was one of the things I loved about you. You have always been the one who showered me with kindness and understanding. But like all good things, they must come to an end… this is the final call. I cannot continue to live my life as a joke… You and I will never be, and I have come to accept this fate. Though my love for you must dissipate, remember that you're always in my heart._

_Always,_

_Helga.'_

I had read that note over a hundred times since the seventh grade. The ordeal that occurred between me and Helga that year was stressful in so many ways. I had gotten my first real girlfriend, and according to Phoebe… Helga finally snapped. Something inside her had clicked, and in some ways I guess it broke her spirit. She showed up on my doorstep one Saturday afternoon with a box in her arms, and tears streaming down her cheeks. I invited her inside and asked her what was wrong… her only response was '_Me_.' and she thrust the box into my arms and ordered me to never look inside, and then to burn it. When I asked her why she leaned in and kissed me directly on the lips. With a box in my hands, I had no way of preventing it.. She leaned back out, her eyes were still coated with tears. The only other words she said were '_Because I failed_', and she left. I was left with the aftertaste of Helgas lips on my own, and a mysterious box that I was supposed to burn. After a few days of contemplating and a discussion with Gerald, I decided to look inside the box. There were dozens of books… all filled with poems….about _me_. A chunk of my hair was even taped inside of one of the books. At the very bottom of the box were two little statues, both of which were of my likeness… and then a larger scale creation which looked _exactly_ like my head. I felt as though I was supposed to be shocked or disgusted by the things I had seen at this point, but something inside me knew that this was just Helgas way of coping with emotions she couldn't express. The first time Gerald saw the contents of the box, he spent half and hour on the floor laughing like a hyena. After he calmed down, he asked if he could actually _read_ the poems. I figured it would be betraying Helgas trust, so I opted against it. Even to this day, Gerald still laughs at the thought of my 'Arnold shrine'… ugh.

As for my relationship with Helga after receiving her box of 'memorabilia', she avoided me like the plague. All she had to do was look in my eyes one time, and she knew I had looked inside the box. My girlfriend at the time ended up breaking up with me two months later. She had found the box in my closet and demanded to know _why_ I had it. When I didn't have an actual answer, she ended it right there. I found out later that she thought I was in to voodoo or freakish rituals. Why would I do voodoo on _myself_? I don't know. I thought maybe after my breakup, Helga might start coming around again. After three more months passed, and still no word from her I took it into my own hands to fix the situation. I had gone to her house and demanded she talk to me face to face. After some coaxing, she finally agreed to sit on the stoop and talk with me. I told her that I wasn't freaked out by her and that I accepted it because that's who she is, and how she expresses herself. I asked her if we could be friends again, and after some thinly veiled insults and a few 'football head!' comments later, she agreed. As for the kiss, neither of us mentioned it again. During our freshman year of high school, I decided to test the waters with Helga, and she her if she still had any feelings for me. She was quick to shoot down the idea, but later explained that though it wasn't easy for her, she was able to move on in a healthy way.

Now that Helga was finally dating someone… even though it _is_ Wolfgang, I felt that her statement was true. She was finally over the last hump. Helga Pataki didn't love me anymore. I closed the book and packed it back into the box. I knew someday I would finally break down and throw the box out or fulfill Helgas wish and burn it, but for now it was my reminder. A reminder that Helga _is_ a kind person, and is capable of so much more than being a bully. I stuffed the box back on to its shelf and finally changed into my pajamas and crawled into my bed. Dimming the lights in my room, I stared into the night sky above, taking a deep breath before exhaling. Thoughts of the box continued to flood my thoughts as I drifted off to sleep. The books, the shrines…. the kiss… it was all too much for one teenage boy to handle.

_Why am I thinking about this anyway?_

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**So there's chapter 2! I hope you're enjoying it so far. I'm hoping chapter three will be along sometime soon. Until then, read and review! **

**XOXO**


	3. Tell me more, tell me more

**Once again, thank you for the reviews on the story so far! I know ya'll aren't familiar with me yet on here, but I hope you'll warm up to me soon ;)**

**Disclaimer: Hey Arnold still isn't mine!…. Dang it.**

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**Helgas POV:**

They say that junior year can be one of the most influential years of your young life. With college looming in the horizon, our lives are supposed to become engulfed in college application pandemonium, PSATs, and raising our GPA to impress the snooty universities we can never afford to get in to. As for myself? This year will be _my_ year. No more spending Saturday nights at home with a tub of Ben and Jerry's and listening to Big Bob and Miriam coo over _Olga_, no more having to babysit Miriam after another one of her 'smoothie' binges. This year was going to be about making me happy for once.

"Yep" I confirmed to my reflection in the mirror. "No drama" I reached for my beanie on the counter, but my fingers rested on something else… I held my old pink bow in front of me and studied its warped edges and slightly faded coloring. For humility purposes, I tied the old bow on the top of my head.

'_I like your bow…' _my eyes clenched tightly at the memory.

I stopped wearing my bow over the summer, being with Wolfgang had made me realize how incredibly stupid it was. The bow symbolized my past.. I wasn't the same Helga Pataki anymore.

"I thought you stopped wearing that?" I jumped nearly half a foot in the air before I realized Wolfgang was standing in the doorway of my bathroom.

"Crimeny Wolfgang! Give me a heart attack why don't ya?" I pulled the ends of the bow and tossed it unceremoniously on the counter. "How'd you get past Big Bob?" I ran my fingers through my pigtails one more time before putting my beanie on.

"He invited me in" his arm snaked around my shoulders, turning me to face him. "Good morning by the way."

"Good morning." my index finger traced his sternum before punching him lightly on his chest. "That's for sneaking up on me!"

"Ow!" he loosened his grip to rub his chest, I took the opportunity to push past him and run back into my room. Before I could close the door a large foot blocked it. "The chase only makes the conquest that much sweeter." he poked his head inside my room, still sporting a devilish grin.

I placed a chaste kiss against his lips and grunted. "Satisfied?"

"For now." he chuckled and removed his foot before backing away. "Shall we?" he held out his hand.

Our fingers intertwined while my other hand grabbed my backpack. We walked down stairs in silence so Miriam wouldn't wake up from her smoothie induced coma. He opened the passenger door of his truck for me and I plopped down in the leather seat. I wasn't particularly looking forward to the actual school year, but I was definitely looking forward to the perks of having a social life. In the parking lot of Hillwood High, several familiar students exited their cars and began greeting each other. Wolfgang pulled in to his usual spot, parked next to him was a familiar red car… Geralds car.

"Hey tall hair boy" my feet planted on the asphalt.

Gerald studied me up and down before his eyes met mine. "Hey Helga.." we stood there awkwardly for a moment before Phoebe poked out of the other side of Geralds car.

"Phoebs!" I waved her over, which she obliged. "Ready for junior year?" I pointed towards the school.

"I'm terribly excited!" she held her backpack tightly to her chest.

"Eh.." Gerald shrugged. "another day, another school year"

"Gerald.." Phoebe began to protest. Their arguing was drowned out as my attention traveled to the other side of Geralds car. Arnold was exiting the from back seat.

"Hey Arnoldo." I smirked.

Just as Gerald had, his eyes raked over me suspiciously before meeting my gaze. "Hey Helga." he closed the back door and joined us in between the two cars. "How's it going?"

"It'd be perfect if I wasn't at this dump." I kicked the tire of Wolfgangs truck. "But other than that I'm just _peachy_"

Wolfgang appeared at my side, wrapping an arm around my shoulder. "Hey G." he nodded at Gerald, which he nodded back in return. "Phoebe." he waved.

"Hello Wolfgang" she smiled politely.

"Football face." he made no facial expressions or gestures whatsoever. I instantly jabbed him roughly in the ribs. "Oh geez." he groaned. "Hello _Arnold_." his name came out like he had just choked on a bug.

"Forgive Wolfgang." I flicked his forehead for good measure. "He forgot to pull his head out of his ass this morning" the group, minus Wolfgang snickered in response. "Come on, take a joke." I kissed his blushing cheek.

"And that's our cue. Come on Phoebe.." Gerald linked his arm with hers. "You coming Arnold?"

Our eyes met for just a moment, he smiled weakly before waving his goodbye. "See ya Helga.."

"Yeah." I waved. "later.." watching their fleeting figures disappear into the mass of students all heading in different directions.

"Helga.." Wolfgang groaned. "Why do I get this feeling that I need to be worried?"

"Worried?" I playfully tapped his head. "Did you hit your head this morning?"

"You can't blame me for being a little... Apprehensive considering the history."

"And _that's_ what it is!… history. You have _nothing_ to worry about. I honestly thought we were past this by now" I tugged him closer.

"I'm sorry" he rested his forehead against mine. "I mean: Caveman Wolfgang sorry" he grunted like a primate before capturing my lips with his.

"You're such a weirdo….. You're lucky I like weird." I pushed him slightly. "Come on, we need to pick up our schedules loverboy." he grabbed both of our backpacks from the back of the truck and we made the trek to the cafeteria to fight the mob of students. A flurry of rambunctious freshman ran past us, comparing schedules and chattering mindlessly about being "bad-ass" now that they're in high school. _Those poor idiots. _Wolfgang and I separated once we reached the cafeteria, I headed over towards the sign labeled 'juniors' where many familiar faces were gathered.

"Why Helga, you look mighty different without your purty pink bow. I reckon I haven't seen you without it since preschool." I glared over my shoulder at Stinky who was currently behind me in line to get our class schedules.

"Does it look like I care what you think _Stinky_?" I hissed.

"I was just observin'.. no need to hoot and holler" he raised his hands protectively.

"Yeah Helga, calm down! Boy howdy you'd think he called you ugly or something" Sid stood next to his freakishly tall sidekick.

"_I'm surrounded by morons." _I muttered under my breath. "HEY! Can we get a move on here! Some of us would like our schedules by Christmas!" I glared at the office assistant who was passing out the juniors schedules.

"Pataki!" Principal Reed pointed an accusing finger in my direction. "Do you want to start off the school year with a detention?"

The crowd of students did a collective _"Oooh!"._

"Oh pipe down ya weasels!"

"Miss Pataki!"

"Kiss my a-"

"Helga, just be quiet!" Arnold grabbed my shoulder. "He's not kidding. He _will_ give you detention."

I avoided the fact that Arnold had just manhandled my shoulder and focused my attention elsewhere. "How did you get your schedule so fast!" I grabbed the small paper from his hands.

"Brainy" he pointed to the other assistant behind the table. He stared over at us and waved… geez.. the damn boy was still wheezing after all these years.

"Ugh." I cringed. "I'd rather eat used cat litter than have to ask Brainy for anything." the moment I said that, Brainy held up what was to be my schedule and fanned the air with it.

"Oh come on Helga… go get it. Make his day."

"I stick by my last statement." my arms crossed instinctively in front of my chest.

"Whatever you say Helga." he grabbed his schedule and exited the cafeteria with Gerald and Phoebe.

"Arnold." I scoffed. "What a sap! What a buffoon! How I hate him… and yet.." I paused dramatically. "Eh.. nope, I just hate him." my days of 'monologue-ing' were long gone… I had no more hidden desires that necessitated a long drawn out proclamation of my supposed 'undying' affection for a certain football headed boy. I glanced over towards Wolfgang who was surrounded by his fellow football brethren.

_I must have a thing for footballs.. _

"Helga! The line is moving." Sid pointed at the large gap in front of me.

"Oh keep your panties on!" the length of the line was still too long for my liking, and Brainy was still keeping an eye on me. "I'm out of here." I proclaimed, relinquishing my spot in the line. "Brainy!" I hissed. "Schedule… NOW."

"Uh…" _wheeze_ "hi." he waved each finger individually.

I placed my palms on the table and leaned against it "Does old Betsy need to come out of retirement Brainy?" and with that, Brainy quickly handed me my class schedule. "I'm glad we see eye to eye." I patted his head before placing a light slap across his cheek.

"So what'd you end up getting?" Wolfgang joined me on my journey to the junior lockers.

"Chemistry, Advanced French, Journalism, Calculus, Honors English, US History… and _Health_?" I read over the schedule again. "What the heck? Why do I have to take a health class? I didn't sign up for that!" I huffed.

"It's some new rule." he shrugged. "I guess there's too many pregnant girls and STD infected teens running around. I heard coach talking about it with Principal Reed. It's some sort of prevention thing.."

"I am _neither_ of those things! It's the idiots who are knocked up and have herpes out the wazoo who need to take that class!" I could practically feel steam flowing out of my ears. Thanks to their stupid health class, I didn't get to take drama… the ONE class that was supposed to be fun.

"Calm down" his strong arms halted me. "I know you wanted to have drama class, but I hear that this health thing is only supposed to be a semester long.. So maybe there's still a chance?" he gently brushed some stray hair from my face. "Let's find your locker.. Then we can take it from there."

I don't know how, but Wolfgang always seemed to have the power to calm me down from my fits of rage. I took another look at my schedule and sighed, I knew he was right. There was nothing I would be able to do about it now. I checked my papers and found my locker number and combination. "look for 397..." I checked the numbers on the end of each row before finding the right one.

"Here it is!" he tapped it. "You going to open it up?"

"Depends, are you going to steal my combination?" I teased. "17-20-5" I spun the knob in the proper directions until I hear a soft click. It was just like the locker I had last year. "You know, every year I expect something amazing to happen when I open up a new locker… but every year I'm greatly disappointed." I closed the locker and spun the knob. A loud bell erupted through the halls causing all of the students to groan.

"Do you want me to walk you to class?" he offered.

"Nah.. I'm a big girl. I'll be okay." I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "See you at lunch?"

"I might have a football meeting today.." his bottom lip protruded. "But I'll try and get out early."

We went our separate ways to our first classes of the day. I had chemistry with Mr. Vargas on the second floor. When I found the classroom, some students had already filled some of the lab tables in the back, so I was forced to sit in one that was closer to the front. "_Bastards.._" I muttered.

"Good morning!" Mr. Vargas came out from behind his desk. "Welcome back! I assume you all had a nice summer vacation?" he earned a few 'eh' and 'yeahs' from a few students. "Wonderful!" his hands clasped together. "Today we'll be discussing the curriculum you will be learning, and filling out some paperwork-"

My mind had already began to wander by the time he started flapping his overly happy yapper. As he passed out the class syllabus and other paperwork, I spent the majority of my time doodling in my new notebook. Before I knew it, the first class of the day was already over. Mr. Vargas said his goodbyes and vowed to see us tomorrow. Oh joy.

Second period was going to be one of my more difficult classes. Advanced French… ugh, I honestly don't even know how I got past basic French let alone rose up to the level of 'advanced.'

A petite woman greeted each of us as we entered into the classroom. Rhonda was already seated towards the middle of the class.

"Bonjour Manquer Lloyd. Comment êtes-vous?" I sat down in the seat next to hers.

(_good morning Miss Lloyd. How are you?)_

"Parfait, comme toujours!" she smirked.

(_Perfect, as always!)_

"Bonjour les élèves! Bienvenue au français avancé. Je suis votre professeur Madame Yorke"

(_Hello students! Welcome to advanced French. I am your teacher Mrs. Yorke_)

Oh geez, all this French was going to give me a headache. I leaned towards Rhonda and whispered. "_Me tuer. S'IL VOUS PLAÎT_."

_(kill me. PLEASE.)_

Our snickers were interrupted when Mrs. Yorke glared at us. "_Oops_" I started snickering again.

"ça suffit!" she warned.

(_enough!_)

"Désolé Madame." we replied robotically.

(_Sorry Madame_)

After giving us one last look of disapproval, she continued rambling in French for another 45 minutes. When the bell rang, all of us shot up from our seats and bolted for the door. My next class was probably going to be my only 'pleasurable' class. I had taken Journalism since 8th grade and found it to be the creative outlet I needed. Instead of writing stupid love poems, I got to write articles. But during my first year of high school, the Senior editor in charge made it a point to only let seniors do the big stories, and forced the underclassmen to stoop down to horoscopes and lunch menus. The tradition had kept on ever since. Rumor has it that this year the boundaries would finally be lifted for non-seniors.

Ms. Tyler was the faculty advisor in charge of the newspaper. She knew more than anyone that my ultimate goal was to become the editor and finally be able to make the newspaper fair for everyone, and to finally be able to write what I want to write. Every junior who intends on applying for the position of editor is required to write an article of their choice, and submit it to a panel of faculty members who read them 'blindly' as they call it. When they choose the article that wows them the most, the author behind it is revealed. Unfortunately this process won't start until mid May.. So until then, I'm stuck with..

"Horoscopes." Ms. Tyler handed me my 'guidelines' and smiled weakly. "I know you'll do wonderfully Helga. You always do."

"Oh yes, I always do." I rolled my eyes. "Getting horoscopes off the net is _BACK BREAKING _work.."

"Helga" she sighed, exasperated. "You need to look on the bright side."

_Okay ARNOLD…geez_

"I know, I know.." I crumpled the paper and tossed it into my backpack. "Now if you don't mind, I'm going to go flush my head down the toilet." I grabbed my backpack and exited as the bell excused us. My calculus class was just across the hall, the first person I saw go inside was none other than Phoebe herself. "PHOEBS!" I wrapped my arm around her shoulder. "Thank _God_ you're in this class too. I'm definitely going to need a study partner this year."

"Oh well.. Um." she stuttered. "I'm sorry to disappoint you Helga, but I'm.. not exactly a _student_ in this class. I'm Mr. Perkins teachers assistant."

"Crimeny! Why'd you have to be so smart Phoebe?" I said mainly to myself.

"I'm sorry Helga. I'll try and help you any way I can.."

"Nah.. I won't _make_ you Phoebs. I guess I really should learn to hit the books on my own." I grabbed a seat towards the back and she took her seat behind the assistants desk in front.

"Helga?" a voice came from behind. There stood in the doorway was Lila Sawyer. "Why gosh Helga! This is ever so exciting, I'm ever so glad that we'll be in the same class." before I could object, she took the seat next to mine.

_Oh God.._

"Oh _yes_ Lila.. _ever so_ exciting." my voice dripped with sarcasm.

The rest of class was spent in the same fashion my other classes had been… syllabus, rules, paperwork… boring. When we were excused, an army of students ran through the halls towards the cafeteria. The other half of the student population went to their cars with their friends. Since Wolfgang was busy and I didn't have keys to his truck I was stuck on campus for lunch. _Damn it._

I rounded the corner and almost instantly collided with someone. "Geez, watch it!" I scowled.

"Sorry Helga." Arnold fixed his collar. "I'm late meeting up with Gerald. We were going to Slausens for lunch.." he thought a moment before speaking again. "You and Wolfgang are more than welcome to join us.."

"Thanks, but Wolfgang is at a football meeting. I'm flying solo today."

"Uh… you know you're still more than welcome to come, right?" he fiddled with then ends of his plaid button up shirt. "If you want to that is."

"Sure football head." I bumped his shoulder. "As long as Gerald doesn't mind letting another girl in 'Thriller'..." we both instantly laughed at his cars nickname.

"It'll be fine.. Come on." he grabbed my wrist and pulled me through the endless sea of students.

"Hey Arnold… and Helga." Gerald raised a suspicious eyebrow.

"Wolfgang is busy." I threw out. "Mind if I tag along with you guys for today?"

"Oh, so _now_ you have time for us?"

"Gerald!" Phoebe and Arnold both gasped.

"It's okay you guys." I shrugged. "He's right. No need to get all up in arms about it. All I can say is that I'm sorry. I was new to the whole 'relationship' thing, I made a mistake..."

The three of them stared at me like I had just grown three heads. "Wow Helga." Arnold admonished. "That was a pretty mature answer."

"Yeah yeah.. So are we having lunch together or what?" I gave Gerald a stern look.

"Sure.." he unlocked the doors and allowed me and Arnold to crawl into the backseat.

The four of us sat in a booth at Slausens munching on hamburgers and fries and shakes. The whole time I felt a pair of eyes watching me. When I looked up, it was the boy across the booth who was watching me so intently.

"Do I have something in my teeth Arnoldo?" I grabbed my chocolate shake and took a long slurp.

"No.." he paused. "I was just trying to find the right way to ask you about your summer vacation. We'd all like to hear about it."

I began choking mid-swallow.. "_my vacation?_" my voice came out hoarsely. I coughed a few times and cleared my throat. "There's nothing to tell, really." Phoebe continued to mindlessly poke at her plate of fries and ignore our conversation, but Gerald and Arnold both continued to stare at me with renewed interest.

"You spent all summer on the road.."

"With _Wolfgang!_" Gerald supplied. "You've got to have some stories for us!"

"Stories!" I snorted with laughter. "You two are worse than girls"

"I didn't say anything about Wolfgang, _Gerald_." he glared over at his best friend. "I wanted to hear about California.. And which colleges you went to... If you found one you liked."

"So you _don't _want to hear all the juicy details?" I raised an eyebrow.

"NO!"

"YES!"

"Gerald!" Arnold growled.

"Why do I feel like I've time traveled back to Grease? Are you two going to start singing 'Summer Nights' to me?"

Both boys stopped glaring at each other and put their glares on me. Phoebe couldn't contain her laughter anymore. The three of us stared at her as she laughed, which in turn caused us to join her in a fit of laughter.

Gerald opened his phone and shushed us. "I hate to break up this strange little lunch date, but we better get back. Lunch ends in 10"

_Date?_… _ugh. Wolfgang would have a fit if he heard that._

"Yeah.. You ready Helga?" Arnold held out his hand to pull me from the booth.

"Yep." I slapped his hand out of the way and pushed myself out. "Let's blow this popsicle stand"

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**Sorry for the wait everyone! Sometimes life just gets in the way. Lol.. But I promise a quicker update for the next chapter. The next chapter with be in Arnolds POV. I'm also sorry if you think the story is moving slowly, but I PROMISE things will be getting more 'juicy' as it progresses.. More time (AKA: days/weeks) will pass after this next chapter. I'm just making it a point to show what their lives are going to be like for the duration of this story. ;)**


	4. Mr Brightside

**Who's ready for another chapter? *raises hand* lol.**

**Disclaimer: Do I really need to say?**

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**Arnolds POV:**

"You're sick Gerald.." I ran my hand across my forehead. "I can't believe you!" I grabbed the handle of the doors that lead us back inside the school. Helga had already taken off to find Wolfgang, and Phoebe had ran off to find the yearbook room.

"I'm telling ya they _did it_ man... I can tell." Gerald checked his schedule for our class number again. "I may not know much, but I know _that_ much for sure… Come on, history class is upstairs." he nodded towards the stairs.

"Gerald… you may _think_ you know. But we're talking about Helga here! She's not that dumb." I continuously kept bumping into students while trailing behind Gerald.

"We can sit here and debate it all we want my man, there's only one way to find out."

"By _not_ finding out?" I cringed. When Gerald stopped in the middle of the hallway without any warning, I ran into him and caused both of us to stumble.

"Does that look like two people who haven't done it?" he pointed to the end of the hallway where Helga and Wolfgang were joined again at the lips.

"Just because you kiss someone, it doesn't mean you're…. _'doing it'_…" I made air quotes. "and quite frankly, I don't _want_ to know. That's Helga and Wolfgangs business.." I opened the door to our history class and shoved Gerald inside.

During US history, I spent most of class avoiding the subject of Helga and Wolfgang. Gerald was slightly obsessed with our friends 'coming of age'… I really didn't have any interest in the subject. The thought of Wolfgang getting busy with _any_ girl made me want to projectile vomit.

"A guy like Wolfgang doesn't stay in a relationship for long… _unless-_"

"_SHUT. UP_." I hissed. "have a little respect for our _female_ friend will you? I'm sure Helga doesn't obsess over our sex lives."

"You have to be having sex to have a sex life." he patted my shoulder.

"I take pride in that." I defended. "I'm not that type of guy and you know it."

"You're one of the few dudes I know who refuses to sleep with a girl even if you actually LIKE her… You're a bold guy Arnold. _Real_ bold."

I rubbed my temples and sighed heavily. I was glad to have gotten off the subject of Helga for now, but instead Gerald began dissecting _my_ sex life… or lack thereof. Why the heck were so many people obsessed with this? Luckily for me the bell rang, and I was able to escape this awkwardly inappropriate conversation. I'd be happy if I never had to hear about sex ever again.

In my next class I didn't really know too many people so I sat towards the back and hoped for the best. Our teacher wrote 'Mrs. Stone' on the dry erase board and turned to face us. She began with the usual 'first day of school' speech and proceeded to pass out paperwork. About ten minutes after class had started, the doorknob began to rattle as it turned.

"Sorry I'm late!" I turned towards the door and my jaw dropped in horror.

"Wolfgang." Mrs. Stone looked less than pleased with his late entry. "Nice of you to finally join us." she pointed towards the seats. "Take a seat."

He surveyed the classroom until our eyes met. "Football face!" he slid a desk next to mine. "Surprise surprise! Fancy meeting you here."

"I could say the same." I muttered. "Why are you in a _junior_ English class?"

"I failed it last year." he propped his feet up on the desk in front of him. "I'm taking junior and senior English this year so I can still play football."

"Joy." I subconsciously scooted as far from him as I could.

"You must _really_ hate me." He said a little too calmly. "It makes me wonder why."

"Maybe because you used to beat me up constantly as a kid? Or the fact you threatened to murder me if I bothered you or Helga?" my voice involuntarily raised an octave. "I have no reason to like you." I concluded.

"Look, I wont beat you up Football face. Helga would never forgive me if I did." he stuck his hand out "lets call a truce? I'm sorry.."

It took every ounce of decency in me to swallow the obscenities in the back of my mind to grab his hand and shake it. "Truce." before our hands released I gripped him a little tighter. "And for the record? It's _Arnold._"

* * *

After forcing what little testosterone induced dominance I had on Wolfgang, I felt slightly nauseous. The last thing I wanted was to piss him off. I felt myself glancing over in his direction every few minutes, scared that he was going to pound my face in. Surprisingly, Wolfgang remained pretty neutral through the whole class. By the time the bell rang I had already packed my stuff into my backpack, and I sprinted to the door. The less interaction I had with Wolfgang, the better off I would be. My last class of the day was downstairs, many of us still were baffled why we had to take a health class. I figured it wouldn't be too terrible since Gerald had it with me the same period.

Several students had already filled out most of the seats in the back, leaving only the first few rows open. Me and Gerald unwillingly were forced to sit in the very front. To my left sat Rhonda… oh gosh.

"Hi Rhonda." I put my backpack at my feet and sat at the desk.

"Bonjour Arnold" she said a little too guttural for my liking.

A few moments before the tardy bell rang, Helga walked inside. She smiled and waved, taking the seat behind Gerald. "It looks like we all got roped into this period, eh football head?" she smirked. It was only then that I realized that a good portion of our friends had ended up in this class too. Stinky, Sid, Rhonda, Brainy, Phoebe, Gerald and myself. "It'll sure make sex ed pretty awkward."

"What?" I turned around to fully look at her. "_Sex ed?_" the words left a stinging sensation on my lips.

"What did you think we were going to be doing in here man?" Gerald chuckled. "Playing crazy eights?"

"I don't know.." I blushed. "_Anything_ but THAT.."

"Is little Awwwnold afraid of _the talk_?" Helga leaned over and pinched my cheek.

"Oh geez." I swatted her hand away. "You two are both little pervs." I pointed an accusing finger at them.

Our teacher ended up being the old school nurse. "_Dear God_.." Helga muttered under her breath. "_that thing is going to teach us about the birds and the bees?_"

"_Shhh._" I placed a finger to my lips.

Mrs. Stover studied the group of students in front of her before plastering a huge grin on her face "I've seen these faces many times before, and I know what you all are already thinking"

"_Where's my free condom?"_ Gerald snickered.

"In due time Mr. Johanssen" she tapped his desk, still smiling calmly. "You're probably all wondering; 'why?' am I right?" several students nodded their heads. "In our state alone, 39% of teenagers get pregnant or develop an STD before the age of 18. My job here is to inform you of the dangers of unprotected sex, and what happens if you do become pregnant. Now, some of these topics may be touchy to some which is why we'll be sending home papers for your parent or guardian to sign. Though this may not be your favorite class, but it might end up being the most beneficial to you in the long run…"

She continued talking about the importance of the course, and explained the different areas of 'sexual health' we would study over the semester. The more she spoke, the redder my cheeks became. I knew enough about sex to know that you don't do it without a condom, and you ask questions first then get naked later… it was a pretty simple formula that so many people 'forget' to follow. So now we all have to suffer through this agonizing display of genitalia diagrams and talk about our 'teenage urges'…

_Oh God.._

"_Are you okay man?"_ Gerald waved his hand in front of my face.

"_I'm fine_" I swallowed thickly. "_I just wish this was over already_"

"_Just wait until she starts talking about the REAL subject matter…. You're totally going to barf football head._" One of Helgas spit wads hit the back of my head. I chose to ignore her comment and focus my attention elsewhere. I glanced over at Rhonda who was currently reading some sort of magazine. When she gazed up and realized I was looking at her, a large smile came across her face.

"_Certainly I didn't just catch you staring at me Arnold?"_ her eyelashes batted rapidly.

"_Uh.._" I scratched the side of my head. "_Not exactly.. I was um… looking at the magazine?"_

_Great excuse, dummy._

She closed the magazine and set it back inside her binder. "_Sure Arnold… I'll accept that for now._" and with that, the final bell rang. I think I spoke for the entire class when I let out a loud 'thank GOD' before rushing out like I was on fire.

"Slow down man!" Gerald chased after me with Phoebe and Helga in tow. "You working today?"

"Yep.. I got the afternoon shift." I tossed my backpack over my shoulder. "You taking me home after?"

He looked at Phoebe before shaking his head. "I can't today." he sighed. "Phoebes parents invited me over for dinner tonight."

"Oh… well that's cool. I'll just see you guys tomorrow?" Helga had already abandoned the conversation and went running to Wolfgang who was standing in front of her locker.

"Arnold!" Gerald shook me slightly. "I _said_ I'll call you later, okay?" his gaze followed mine over to Helga. "Geez.. I know it's Helgas first real boyfriend and all, but there's more to life than making out."

"Yeah.." I stuck my tongue out. "Anyway, you'll call me later then? I get off at 8."

"You know it!" we did our handshake and went our separate ways.

At the bus stop, several freshman were recalling their tales of 'the first day of the rest of their lives'.. oh geez, if I thought I had to spend the rest of my life in high school I think I would jump off the nearest building. There are much bigger and better things out there than dating, drama, and who we're taking to prom..

"Aren't you a little _old _to be riding the bus football head?" Helga joined me, minus Wolfgang.

"Where's-?"

"Need I remind you that its _football_ season Arnoldo? He has practice until later on." after a few moments of silence she tugged on my sleeve. "Come on, we don't need to take the bus with the freakish freshman."

"Where are we going?" I followed behind her like a puppy dog.

"Slausens?" she said in her 'you idiot!' voice. "I figured we might as well walk… Slausens is on the way to my house."

Helga and I hadn't really 'hung out' together since probably fourth grade. We spent most of our thanksgiving walking around town, lost in our own little world. We never really spoke of it again, like many other things… but I kind of missed times like that with Helga, she wasn't scowling and yelling at me. It was kind of refreshing to see her that way. Most of our interaction consisted of 'move it football head!' or 'watch it you yutz!' and I would always reply 'sorry Helga' or 'whatever you say Helga'. Its just who we were.

"What are you thinking about football head?"

"You." I instantly realized how that must have sounded. "What I _mean_ is… why are you walking with me?"

"Would you rather I didn't?" her footsteps fell in sync with mine. "You used to walk with Gerald all the time when we were younger.. Every time you walked with _me_ was after something bad happened."

She was right.. "If my memory serves me right, you wouldn't have let me walk with you anyway." I smirked. "You 'hated' me.. Remember?… and not to mention I was terrified you were going to kill me at any given time."

"Have I ever hit you?" she smirked.

Come to think of it, I don't remember a specific time where Helga violently hit me… even though she constantly threatened to. Yet another reason why I should have known she was in love with me back then. "I guess not." I concluded. "But why?"

We reached Slausens moments later. She wrapped her hand around the door handle and pulled it open for me. "We both know the answer to that one… see ya bucko."

"See ya.." I watched her figure fading in the distance.

As long as I live, I don't think I'll ever understand Helga Pataki. She spent so much time and energy trying to prove her hatred, but spent even _more_ time and energy loving me in secret… All of her poems and shrines were made with pure and undying love. But I guess only part of that statement was true now. I guess love _can_ die.

"I think too much sometimes." I chuckled to myself, tying my apron around my waist in the back room of Slausens.

"Yes, you do." David, my boss laughed at me. "Arnold, we got a shipment of strawberries today and I need you to help me get them out of the truck."

After unloading several boxes full of strawberries the dinner rush had hit Slausens. I grabbed a fresh pad of paper and a pencil and began taking orders. Though I never really pictured myself as a waiter, I was actually doing pretty well at it. I had started over the summer so I could get a head start on saving up for my future car. I would spend my mornings at the community center volunteering, then head to Slausens for the afternoon. It was probably one of the busiest summers I ever had. I had a feeling that this school year would be even more busy. Junior year is when you're really supposed to step it up academically.

"Hey Arnold!" Sid and Stinky plopped down at the bar. "We didn't see you much at school today."

"Except for that darn baby makin' class. Wilikers!" Stinkys face contorted unpleasantly.

"I'm right there with you Stinky." I chuckled. "What can I get you two?"

"I reckon I'll get me a chocolate shake."

"Did you guys get more strawberries yet?" Sid twirled a salt shaker against the bar top.

"Just got them in today." I pointed towards the back.

"Then a strawberry shake for me. And we'll share a basket of fries."

I scribbled down their order and sent it back to the kitchen. "It'll be a few minutes."

"So what's the deal with you and Rhonda?"

"Sid.." I warned. "She's your ex! Do you really think I want to discuss this?" I flicked a rolled up straw wrapper at him.

"We dated in SIXTH grade man! I'm over her. And rumor has it, she's got it _bad_ for you." he smirked.

"So?" I grabbed another tables order and took it to them before returning to the bar. "What does that have to do with me?"

"Well Arnold, I reckon she's hoping you like her too." Stinky said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

I slid their order down the bar towards them. "Do you like her?" Sid popped a fry in his mouth.

"I don't _think_ I like her that way Sid.. And I've honestly thought about it.." Rhonda wasn't really a girl that I ever had romantic feelings for. Sure, she was a cute girl back in fourth grade. Some would even consider her 'hot' now that she's gone through puberty and grown into a woman. I wouldn't deny her looks didn't spark some interest. But for me, looks aren't everything. Rhonda may be beautiful but the lights are only partially on upstairs. Don't get me wrong, she's rather smart.. But all she cares about is the latest fashion, and being popular. I needed someone who has more in common with me.

"ARNOLD!" Sid clapped his hands together.

Darn me and my internal thoughts..

"What?"

"I said; what if she finally asks you out? Will you say yes?"

"Sid, for being 'over her' you seem slightly obsessed." I chuckled. "And if she _did_ ask me out… I don't know what I'd say."

"Well, just let her down easy." he muttered.

Sid was another one of those people who had trouble letting go of the past. Even though he wouldn't ever admit it, he still cared deeply for Rhonda. She was his first girlfriend, and I think he kept that close to his heart. If I ever went out with Rhonda, I'd be afraid of it hurting Sid in the process. There had to be some kind of 'guy code' when it came to that sort of thing. I'd have to ask Gerald later..

By closing time, I had finished mopping the dining room and cleaned all the tables. I got all of my tips out of my apron before I hung it back on its hook in the back room. I was _more_ than happy to be done for the night. It had seemed like such a long day. Just as David was locking the doors, a large hummer pulled up next to the curb. The license plate read 'BIGBOB'. The passenger window rolled down revealing Helga in the drivers seat.

"Hop in football head." she grinned.

I hesitated only a moment before pulling the passenger door open and hopping in. I had never ridden in a hummer before. This was defiantly a first.. "How'd you get the car from Big Bob?" I clicked my seatbelt.

"I told him I was going to Wolfgangs." so apparently Big Bob liked Wolfgang? "Which isn't exactly a lie. I'm stopping by there after I take you home."

"Oh.." I couldn't really think of anything else to say. If Gerald were here, the first thing out of his mouth would be '_you're gonna go DO IT, huh_?'… ugh. "What made you want to drive me home anyway?"

"Geraldo bailed on you. I figured I would pay it forward."

"Oh." _again_ with the one word answers… fantastic. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it football head." we pulled up in front of the boarding house and sat there a moment. "See you tomorrow?" she offered.

"Yeah.. Thanks again for the ride Helga." I grabbed my stuff and jumped out. She honked a few times and waved as she drove away.

"Hey Shortman." Grandpa greeted me as I walked in. "How was your first day back at school?"

"Great" I deadpanned. My thoughts instantly went back to the 'permission slip' for health class that was waiting to be signed by my grandpa… He was going to have a field day with this. Grandpa was always happy when I experienced a coming of age moment in my life. He thought by sitting me down and talking about things, it made us 'bond'… I usually felt slightly nauseous. This wasn't going to be any different… I just hope he didn't go into a long drawn out monologue about the birds and the bees. I pulled the note out of my backpack and handed it to him, hoping I didn't have to explain any further.

"Health class?" he scoffed. "In my day, we didn't have stuff like that!"

Oh… here we go.

"Grandpa!" I interrupted. "I just need you to sign it. _Please_?"

"Oh ho-ho Shortman, you're embarrassed!" he ruffled my hair. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about! Its perfectly natural, and kids your age are… well, uh.. How do you kids say it? '_doing it_'.."

"_Grandpa!"_ I pleaded. My face had to have been a deep shade of red at this point. "I'm begging you, just sign it."

"Okay Arnold, no need to have a heart attack. That's my job!" he grabbed a pen off the table and signed the paper.

"Thanks Grandpa.." I grabbed the paper and took off upstairs before he could offer more 'words of wisdom'.

* * *

"_My man, your Grandpa is awesome!_" Gerald cackled on the other end of the phone. "_doing it…HAHAHA!_"

"He probably would have tried to give me advice if I had stood there longer! It was terrible Gerald! I can't imagine what my reaction will be like in _class_!" I threw a pillow over my face and groaned. "Sex ed for the non sexually active should be illegal."

"_Are you telling me you can't find the bright side of the situation?_" he mock-gasped. "_I am SHOCKED._"

"Oh please." I sighed. "The bright side is… an easy A?"

"_It wont be so easy when you're passed out on the floor after seeing a diagram of the female anatomy."_

"Look, I can handle it Gerald. It's just going to be awkward! I mean, you don't feel awkward AT ALL? Your girlfriend is in the same class!"

"_So?"_

"Dude, does _nothing_ faze you?"

"_Pretty much._" he chuckled. "_look man, everything will be fine. Just cool out! I'll be right there with you."_

"Thanks Gerald." I sighed. "I guess I better get to bed soon… we gotta do the whole thing again tomorrow. Are you coming by to pick me up in the morning?"

"_You know it!_"

"Alright. See you in the morning. Good night!" I hung up the phone and laid down further under the sheets. "Tomorrow will be better." I reassured myself.

It has to be. There's always a bright side.

_Always._

* * *

**So there you have chapter 4! I know, it was probably boring for you. The next chapter should be pretty interesting. I'll be doing a time jump (probably two months or so). I also fully intend to make sex ed as awkward as possible (as it was for me) LOL.. And also, I got the inspiration for the whole 'sex ed' thing from a photo I saw on Deviantart by Limey404 called "Sex Ed is funny"… it made me LMFAO. **


	5. Forced entry

**So I'm guessing either the title is scaring people from reading, or they just don't know who I am and they won't give me the time.. Either way, I'm continuing the story because I've honestly put a lot of time and effort into this. And I'M proud of my work which is all that matters. So to those who read AND review, thank you ;) I appreciate the feedback.**

**(side note!: in this fan fiction, the FTI incident **_did_** happen.. But the Jungle Movie never did. I just thought I should mention that in case some of you hadn't caught on yet.)**

**Disclaimer: Last time I checked, I still didn't own Hey Arnold! The jungle movie would have happened.. **_**somehow**_**…**

* * *

_**(**Two Months Later**)- October**_

**Helgas POV:**

I could feel his eyes watching me. I didn't have to look up to know that his eyes were fixated on every move that I was making. I would chew on the end of my eraser, or tap my fingers gingerly against my thigh. Each movement would elicit a new reaction. "How's your studying going over there Wolfgang?" I finally lifted my head and set my books in front of me.

"It'd be better if you'd let me sit on the bed with you." he kicked his feet out across the carpeting of his bedroom. "My butt is asleep."

"Then get up and stretch." I teasingly bounced on the bed. "Ahhhh, comfy." I leaned back into his pillows and picked up my book. "If R equals 5z, then 15z equals 3y, then R equals.." I began scribbling down the problem.

"Helga, do you know how to write poems?" I felt my hand freeze and my body jump slightly.

"Wolfgang, I'm in the middle of a PSAT prep question.. Wait a second." I knew I wouldn't be able to finish the problem after that bombshell. I pretended to write the answer before tossing my stuff aside and patting the spot on the bed next to me. "Which class do you have to write a poem for?"

"Mrs. Stone.. My junior English class." he plopped down just a few inches from me. "I know nothing about poetry. I asked Arnold if he had any pointers, and he told me you know how to write poetry."

_That BASTARD.. I'll kill him._

"What does the poem have to be about? Are there any rules?"

"No rules really.. She said it has to be 12 lines." he handed me his paper to show me what he had so far.

"This paper is blank" I rubbed my temples. "Wolfgang, you need to _try_! I'm not writing the whole thing for you… okay?"

"I know." he sighed dejectedly.

"To write good poetry, you need to write about something that inspires you… what inspires you?" I brushed the back of my hand against his cheek.

His hand came up and held mine as he kissed it. "You.." he mumbled between kisses.

"You're a cheese ball." I pulled my hand away slightly. "And a liar." he almost looked a little offended. "If I inspired you so much, the words would come to you as easily as you exhale.."

"You have a way with words." he kissed my wrist. " and unlike most people, you believe in me." he kissed my forearm. "and for the first time since I don't know when… you gave me a reason to be happy." his lips pressed into my shoulder then my neck. "I just can't say it as poetically as you.."

At that point I had last all coherent thought. "Y-you should… write.." he hesitated a moment before kissing me and pressing us into the pillows. "Wolfgang.." I regained some of my vocabulary. "We should study…" his brooding figure remained hovering me applying pressure to my lower half.

"10 more minutes?" he begged like a three year old child.

"10 minutes will turn into an hour."

"You say that like it's a bad thing." he chuckled before pressing his lips to mine. After a few minutes, I rolled over so I was on top.

"Now its time to study." I quickly jumped up and adjusted my clothing and hair. "Get back on the floor… write your poem."

"You're feisty.. I like that" he smirked.

"Yeah yeah, get to it!" we silently went back to our activities on opposite ends of the room for about half an hour. I finished the practice math section and moved on to the writing section. Wolfgang crawled to the foot of the bed and peered at what I was writing.

"Why are you practicing for a _practice_ exam?"

"Because when I take the REAL one, its important that I'm prepared… didn't _you_ take the SATs last year?"

"Yeah." he shrugged. "But I'm counting on a football scholarship next year."

"Don't you think schools want someone who wont constantly be in trouble because of his grades?" before he could answer, my cell phone began ringing. '_Princess_' flashed across the screen. "Yes Rhonda?"

"_Are you with Wolfgang at the moment?_"

"Uh… yeah?" I stared at Wolfgang awkwardly. "Why?"

"_I need you to relay a message for me. Since he hosted the Halloween party last year, its technically my turn. He'll get new years this year.._" what the hell? They traded parties every year?

"Wolfgang, Rhonda says she's doing the Halloween party this year. You get new years." I felt like a complete dink for being the man in the middle.

"Aww.. Come on! Halloween is my favorite holiday! And its my senior year! It'll be my last chance to throw the party." he whined.

"YOU talk to her then." I shoved the phone to his ear.

"Rhonda!…. No!…NO! SHUSH… I don't _care_ Rhonda!… NO!" the heated argument between the two socialites continued for several minutes. "Oh geez… FINE. I'll make arrangements for new years.. I expect one hell of a Halloween, got it?" he hung up the phone and tossed it on his bed, instantly rubbing his temples in small circles. "Rhonda Wellington Lloyd is a pain in the ass." he concluded.

"Amen." I sighed. "So I take it we'll be attending a Lloyd soiree on Saturday?"

"She says the party is going to be decade themed… everyone needs to pick their favorite decade and dress accordingly… UGH.." Wolfgang wasn't one for themed Halloween parties.

"We can be Sonny and Cher!" his face turned sour. "How about we go as Joe Montana and a 49ers cheerleader?" his face instantly lit up. "I'm totally kidding, pervert!"

"Well what are we going to do?"

"We don't have to dress alike, doi!… just pick something from your favorite era. I'm thinking I'm going to be a go-go dancer." I began packing up my books into my backpack.

"Isn't that the 60's?" he pondered.

"Yep." I stood up and walked to the door. "Drive me home?"

He grabbed his wallet and keys. "As you wish."

We pulled up in front of my house fifteen minutes later. The porch light was off as usual, but there was a faint glow coming from the living room. Big Bob must be watching The Wheel.. "Thanks for the ride."

"Thank you for studying with me." he reached out and grabbed my hand. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"The new Evil Twin movie comes out tomorrow! We should go after school.. We can go costume shopping too." he looked slightly less enthused about costume shopping. "I'll see you in the morning" I leaned over to kiss his cheek, he turned his head and our lips met. His left hand reached up to cup my cheek. For some reason, I had the feeling he didn't want me to leave. I gave in and allowed him to continue for a little while before pulling back. "I need to finish studying."

"Alright Helga." he smirked. "See you in the morning."

"Goodnight." I jumped out of the truck before he had a chance to change his mind. "Bob! Miriam! I'm home."

"Quiet down little lady! I'm watching The Wheel!" Bob growled.

"Well sorry _Bob_.." I muttered.

Miriam was passed out behind the couch and snoring heavily. I checked the kitchen and saw her blender in the sink. _Bingo_… I quietly went upstairs and entered my room. It looked pretty much the same since my childhood, I didn't really have a reason to redecorate it. I kind of liked the nostalgia. My hand reached blindly for a light switch until a florescent light filled the room. I dumped the contents of my backpack on to my bed and grabbed my SAT prep book. Studying with Wolfgang hadn't been beneficial for me, I mostly studied with him to make sure he did his homework.

"OLGA!" my dads voice boomed from the other side of the door.

"WHAT?" I shouted just as loudly.

"Someone is on the phone for you. Its your little friend Alfred."

"Arnold?" I gasped. Why would he call my _house_? I have a cell phone! I picked up the phone and put my hand over the receiver "I got it Bob!…. Hello?"

"_Hey Helga. Sorry about calling you at your house._" he chuckled. _"I was wondering if you could do me a favor._"

"What kind of 'favor' are you talking about Football head?"

"_I won't be in class tomorrow. I'm sort of… ditching, I guess."_

"YOU? DITCHING?" I began laughing uncontrollably. "Why are you ditching? And why am I not invited?" I teased.

"_I can't really explain."_

"Not a good enough answer. You lose!" I lowered the phone from my ear and pretended to hang up.

"_NO! Helga! Wait!"_ he pleaded.

"Yes?" I held back my laughter.

"_it's a…. personal issue, okay?_" I could sense the nervousness in his voice.

"Ooookay… I'm a little freaked out now. Do you have herpes or something?"

"_I don't have herpes, Helga_" he deadpanned.

"Then why the secrecy?"

"_I'm taking Arnie to the clinic, okay? Satisfied?"_

"Ewwwwwww!" I gasped. "Who infected _that_ thing?"

"_Apparently he had a fling with Lulu during his schools homecoming week… and now.."_ he sighed "_He's probably made himself into another statistic."_

"You're a good guy Arnold.." I held the phone a little tighter. "..But anyway, what do you need me to do? What about Gerald?"

"_Gerald wasn't picking up his phone when I called… He's probably with Phoebe. So I called you."_ oh joy.. I was second choice. "_I need you to write down my homework assignments."_

"You know, when a regular person ditches, they don't usually give a damn about their homework."

His laughter filled the silence between the dead airspace. "_Well, I guess I'm not a regular person."_

"You could say that again football head."

* * *

Around eight pm on Saturday night, I was waiting impatiently on the front steps of my stoop. The people that walked by my house gave me weird looks. "What are you looking at pal? You've never seen a go-go dancer before? Crimeny!" I couldn't really blame the guy for looking.. A potion of my midriff was showing, and I was wearing long white thigh high boots. I took my hair down and put a small white hat in replacement of my beanie. The polyester made my skin itch, but at least I looked good.

Fifteen minutes later, Wolfgang pulled up in his truck honking his horn obnoxiously. I hopped in and proceeded to punch his shoulder. "Ouch! What was that for?" he smirked.

"Big Bob is watching The Wheel, dummy! And you're honking like an idiot." I think it had barely registered in Wolfgangs mind that I was scantily dressed.

"You look hot." he ran his index finger through my hair. "Don't you want to get a coat or something?"

_What the?_

"Why would I want a coat? It'd cover me up"

"_Exactly!_ My hot girlfriend is in a tiny outfit, and we're going to a party full of hormonal teenage boys."

"You worry too much." I rubbed the back of his hand. "Nobody's messed with me before, and nobody will mess with me now." I paused a moment before blushing. "You think I'm hot?"

I didn't think it was possible, but Wolfgang blushed a brighter shade of red than me. "We're going to be late." he cleared his throat several times before putting the truck in drive. Rhonda lived about ten minutes from my place, her house was decked out in Halloween decorations and green and purple lights. We parked half a block down and walked to her stoop. Sid and Stinky greeted us in the foyer by jumping in front of us and screaming.

"Wow Sid, I think I just crapped my pants." I deadpanned.

"Why Helga, I reckon you look mighty-"

"Mighty _what _Stinky_?_" Wolfgang growled.

"Purty?" he stepped back nervously.

"Calm down tiger!" I stepped in front of Wolfgang. "_don't be an ass! We're here to have a good time._ _I'm only warning you once_" I whispered harshly in his ear. "kay?" my head cocked to the side.

He took my hand and pulled me through the mass of dancing people. I'm guessing we were looking for Rhonda. As if on cue, Rhonda appeared in the kitchen… with Arnold. She was leaning closely and listening to whatever he was saying, laughing every few moments and placing her hand on his arm. "Oh Arnold, you slay me!" she practically purred.

"Hey Princess." I grabbed a barstool and sat across from them. "_Fabulous_ party"

"Why thank you." she grinned. "I was just telling Arnold that I thought it was missing something."

"And I told you it's _fine_. Everyone is having fun." he glanced over at my outfit. "Go-go girl?" he smirked.

Wolfgangs grip on my hand intensified. I squeezed back with just as much intensity. "Yep… and are you James Bond?" I pointed to his attire. "Classy choice football head."

"Thanks… Wolfgang you're the Hulk? It suits you!" his mom spent _hours_ painting him green.

"Thanks.." he held back a snarl.

"Well I'm the Queen of Hearts" Rhonda announced proudly. "Do you like it Arnold?" she gyrated her hips and moved a little closer to him.

Dear Lord…Rhonda was not so good with subtlety. I could sense Arnolds uneasiness with Rhondas blatant display of flirting. He had already backed himself into the counter and had nowhere to run.

"Princess! What do you have planned for tonight?" I attempted to distract her so Arnold could escape.

"I was _just_ telling Arnold that we should play some games." her eyes darted over towards the nervous football head.

Rhondas definition of 'games' was different than mine and his. Me and Arnold started a tradition during our freshman year. While everyone else got down and dirty, me and him would lock ourselves in a room and play cards. I had a feeling Arnold was about to experience his first game of truth or dare… but knowing Rhonda, she wanted seven minutes in heaven… with _him_.

"We don't need games Rhonda! Aren't we getting too old to go into closets and make out?"

"No" Wolfgang wrapped his arm around me.

"You aren't helping!" I elbowed his ribs. "And are you saying you would _play_ that game? You would go in a closet with another person and make out?"

"NO! No.. I meant with you!" he looked slightly hurt.

"That's what I thought." I grabbed his hand and took his to the den. Apparently that's where the DJ was. I spotted Gerald and Phoebe in the corner dancing closely. He was dressed and Michael Jackson in the 'Thriller' video, and Phoebe was dressed like the girl in the video. "Check out tall hair boy" I clutched tightly to Wolfgang. "I should have known he'd pick that!"

The music was a mixture of something from each era ranging from 1950 to today. When Phoebe and Gerald got close enough to us we exchanged thumbs up on our costumes. '_Sexy_!' I mouthed to Phoebe. Her face burned a crimson red. It was always fun to get Phoebe all flustered. The room fell slightly quiet as a slow song from the 90's played. I wrapped my arms around Wolfgangs neck until our midsections touched. It felt kind of nice to have someone to dance with for once. Usually I spent parties hanging out with Arnold upstairs. He never offered to dance with me before, even just as friends. As the song came to an end, another fast paced song began playing but Wolfgang didn't loosed his grip. "The song is over." I moved my hands down to his biceps. "Wolfgang?"

"Sorry." he blushed. "I just can't believe you're dancing with me.."

"Of course I am! I'm your girlfriend dummy!"

"I know." he smiled. "I just feel lucky…being near you."

I've never really been a big fan of cheesy confessions such as this, but something about it coming from Wolfgang seemed to hit me in the heart. "What are you saying?" I leaned in a little closer.

"Well.. Um.. I-"

"HELGA!" Arnold spun me around suddenly. "_Hide. Me.!_" he hid behind me like I was his shield.

"Get lost!" Wolfgang shoved him away.

"Wolfgang!" I slapped his hand. "Wait for me upstairs.. Okay? We can talk up there. Just give me a few minutes." he glared at Arnold.. It wasn't a glare that I recognized, he looked genuinely angry. He pushed Arnold and he walked by, tripping him into me. "Watch the hands football head!" his hands rested dangerously low on my hips.

"Dance with me?" He grabbed my hand and pulled me further into the group of dancing people. When we reached the center he pulled me closer and spun me around in circles.

"Whoa!" I rested my palms against his shoulders as we moved. "Why are you hiding? What happened?" we swayed with the music for a moment before he turned me away from him. I was about to say something until I felt his midsection touch my backside. "WHOA Arnoldo!" I spun back to him… _big mistake_. Our noses were practically touching, as were our midsections.

"She tried to take me _upstairs_!" he gulped. "So I told her I had to go to the bathroom.. And here I am." he grabbed my hand and spun me again.

"So you're just going to hide from her?" the song changed into another slow song, this time from the 70's. Without hesitation, he grabbed me by my waist and pulled me closer. I would normally be furious at the close contact, but Arnold wasn't even looking at me while we danced. I tentatively rested my arms around his neck and moved with him.

"I wanted to ask your opinion first.." he finally looked at me, causing me to jump slightly.

"Do you have feelings for her?"

"I don't feel all goofy when I'm around her.. But she _does_ make me nervous."

"Well football head, I can't tell you what to do. But if you don't have feelings for her, then you should just tell her. Don't play with her feelings.." the song came to an end, neither of us moved for a moment. "Get to it Arnold!" I pulled him by the lapel of his suit.

"Thanks for the advice… and the dance Helga" he grabbed my hand, kissing the back of it.

My fourth grade wiles wanted to swoon, but quickly realized that there was no need to swoon. I recollected my thoughts and headed upstairs to find Wolfgang. I ended up finding him in one of the guest bedrooms, sitting on the bed. He looked pissed..

"Hey" I closed the door behind me and sashayed over to him with a goofy look on my face. "Oh come on!" I took residence in his lap. "Arnold was in crisis.. He's my _friend_, and he needed my help."

"You dance with all your friends like that?" He huffed.

"You were _spying_ on me?" I got off his lap. "Why?"

"I wasn't spying on _you_! I was spying on that pervert _Arnold_. I saw the way he was looking at you Helga! You didn't see it because he turned you around so he could hump on you!" I felt like my jaw had fallen to the floor.

"Arnold was _NOT_ humping me!" I slapped his shoulder. "He's one of my oldest friends, and he's a respectful guy."

A look of defeat came across his face. "Do you blame me for being jealous of him? You loved him for a long time.." he pulled me back into his lap. "I was hoping someday you could… l-…love me th-that way."

"Things between me and Arnold are completely different than how they are between me and you." I pushed some of his hair out of his face. "He saw me when I was invisible.. And _that_ is what made me fall in love with him. With you and I… it's just… different."

"Helga…" he looked deeply into my eyes "I…I think I love you."

My heart felt like it was about to burst out of my chest. My pulse had risen, and my palms were sweating. I didn't know how to respond. 'thanks'?… 'okay'?…'ditto'?…

"Um.." I bit my lip. "I need to use the bathroom!" I shot up like a rocket and closed the bedroom door behind me. I paced back and forth for a moment in front of the door. What the heck do I tell him? Do I love him? A wave of nausea came over me suddenly, and this time I really DID need a bathroom. I ran across the hall and opened the nearest door. The light from the hallway lit the dark room, and I instantly realized I wasn't in a bathroom. Before my eyes, sprawled out on a bed was Arnold… being straddled by none other than Rhonda. Their lips connected, and hands roaming. Both of their eyes were closed, and neither noticed the interruption. My feet were frozen in place, and I was unable to run from this horrifying image.

"Helga!" Wolfgang came up behind me and stood in the doorway. "Holy crap!" he announced.

Arnolds eyes shot open and he pushed Rhonda off of him, knocking her to the hardwood floor. His shirt hand been unbuttoned… along with his pants. "Helga?" he sat up.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY ROOM?" Rhonda hissed. "GET OUT!"

My eyes stayed locked on Arnolds for another moment longer. "Gladly Princess.." I grabbed the doorknob and shut the door, leaving them in the dark.

Where they belong.

"Lets _go_" I grabbed Wolfgangs wrist and dragged him down the stairs. "Take me home."

"Helga?" he looked concerned. "Are you okay?"

"I just want to go home… please?" I rested my head in the crook of his neck. "Please?"

"Okay.." he laced his fingers with mine and took me back to the car. When we pulled in front of my house, we sat there awkwardly for what seemed like an eternity. "I'm sorry if I upset you tonight Helga… If you aren't ready to say it back, then I understand."

Why did he have to be so nice right now? "I'm just not there yet.. I'm sorry." I leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Call me tomorrow.." I smiled weakly.

My feet stomped up each step to my room making a loud thud with each step. I didn't care if Bob and Miriam woke up. My head was racing, and my mind was unable to process a coherent thought. WHY did I care if I caught that stupid football head _groping_ Rhonda? Why did I care that I freaked out when Wolfgang told me he loved me?

I ripped the hat off my head and slammed it to the floor, unzipping my boots in the process. I kicked them off and straight into the wall. In a fit of rage, I opened the closet door and clapped my hands until the light turned on. The closet was no longer a shrine to Arnold, it was empty.. Like me. I counted three planks to the left, seven forward, and two more to the right. I wedged my fingers in-between the planks of wood and began maliciously pulling at them until I heard a loud crack and a snap. A piece of broken wood cut me slightly when I reached inside the gaping hole I just created. I dug around blindly until I felt what I was looking for. _A book_. A few angry tears fell down my cheeks as I clutched the book to my chest. I promised myself I would _never_ touch this again. I buried it.. Out of sight, out of mind. My fingers traced the brim, and finally grabbed the corner and opened it.

"I never thought I'd see you again." I sniffled. My hand reached inside the hollowed out book and pulled out…

_A small gold locket.._

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***Gasp* I'm really surprised I didn't have anyone ask me where her locket was! Well there it is! Lol… so what does that mean for Helga? **

**Stay tuned!**

**XOXO- ThriLLer89**


	6. State of shock

**Thank you so much for your kind reviews on the last chapter! I know not everyone is a fan of Wolfgang, and honestly? Neither am I! But when I stop and think about the HA crew getting older, I think Helga and Wolfgang would actually get along. I know they may seem odd together, but if you REALLY think about it you'll see what I see. And as for the storyline, YES this is an Arnold/Helga fic! Arnold is just a tad stubborn (and blind) when it comes to his feelings for Helga. And Helga… well, she's in denial. DOI! Lol**

**Disclaimer: I think you know by now HA isn't mine XD**

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_**(**One Hour Earlier**)**_

**Arnolds POV:**

"I really don't want to be here Gerald! Why'd I let you convince me?" the smell of latex and stage makeup filled my nose as we entered the dwelling of Miss Rhonda Lloyd.

"Because you love Halloween! And I spent 150 dollars on this costume, and I'm _not_ wasting it!" he pointed to his vintage Thriller costume.

"Are you worried about Rhonda?" Phoebe gently grabbed my arm. "We can stay close if you need us to." Gerald began frantically waving his arms behind her and shaking his head.

"Its fine Phoebe.. I can handle Rhonda." _I hope_…

"We'll see you later buddy" Gerald winked. "My lady, shall we?" he held his hand out to Phoebe. They left me standing in the foyer to fend for myself. It would only be a short amount of time before Rhonda would find me. I grabbed a small bottle of soda from the snack table and ventured my way further into the party. Several of our classmates were standing around and socializing, the others were dancing in the den where the DJ was located. I ended up finding Lila and Nadine in the kitchen.

"Hey guys!" I perched myself against the counter. "What's up?"

"Great costume Arnold!" Nadine smiled.

"It makes you look ever so handsome" Lila nodded in agreement.

"Thanks." I took another swig of my soda. "Have I missed anything exciting?"

"Not really, it's been kind of boring so far." Nadine peered over my shoulder. "and now you know what? We need to go!" she grabbed Lila and dashed out of the room.

That was…weird.

"Arnold!" Rhonda wrapped an arm around my shoulder. "I'm so glad you made it! I've been looking for you."

"Looking for me?" I backed away slightly. "What for?" I figured it would be easier to play dumb in this situation. Rhonda would only pursue me harder if she knew I had caught on.

"I wanted to spend time with you… you know? Talk maybe?" she removed her arm from around my shoulder and leaned next to me on the counter. "Are you enjoying school so far?"

"For the most part.." I shrugged, still feeling extremely awkward around her. I didn't really know what to say, or how I should talk to her. Knowing that she _wanted_ me made it difficult. If I was nice she was going to take it as flirting, and if I was cold and distant it would hurt her feelings. I opted for middle ground, not being too cold, or too nice. We stood there talking for about ten minutes about school. I even expressed my disdain of our health class. She would laugh politely and set her hand against my arm. She also kept mentioning how the party was missing an element, that people were growing 'bored'. "It's fine Rhonda.. Everyone is having a good time. You're a great hostess."

"Oh Arnold, you slay me!" she gazed at me through half lidded eyes.

"Hey Princess." Helgas voice broke Rhondas trance. She had grabbed a barstool and sat across from us. "_Fabulous _party" it didn't take a genius to realize she was kidding.

"Why thank you." she grinned brightly. I guess Rhonda wasn't a sarcasm expert.. "I was just telling Arnold that I thought it was missing something."

"And I told you it's _fine_. Everyone is having fun." I patted her shoulder. My eyes traveled over to Helgas outfit.. She was wearing long white boots, a short skirt, and a colorfully designed blouse that revealed a portion of her stomach, and her hair was down. "go-go girl?" I concluded.

"Yep… and are you James Bond?" she pointed to my suit. "Classy choice football head."

"Thanks… Wolfgang you're the Hulk? It suits you!" his personality _and_ looks.. I instantly felt a little guilty for admitting that.. Even if it was in my own mind.

"Thanks.." his voice seethed.

"Well I'm the Queen of Hearts" Rhonda held her hands up in a 'Ta-da!' pose. "Do you like it Arnold?" her hips moved almost _seductively_ in my direction, pushing me further into the counter. My eyes practically bulged out of their sockets. Her flirting was getting more and more intense. I made it a point to avoid her gaze at all costs..

"Princess! What do you have planned for tonight?" Helga saved me from awkwardness once again. I sent her a appreciative glance, but she wasn't looking at me… but Wolfgang was. Oh geez..

"I was _just_ telling Arnold that we should play some games." she winked at me.

She did _not_ say anything about games!

"We don't need games Rhonda! Aren't we getting too old to go into closets and make out?" Helgas eyebrow raised slightly.

"No" Wolfgang wrapped his arms around Helga possessively. Obviously stating his dominance over me. It was like some ancient animalistic ritual fueled by testosterone.

"You aren't helping!" she elbowed his ribs harshly. "And are you saying you would _play_ that game? You would go in a closet with another person and make out?" her face hardened.

"NO! No.. I meant with you!" he gave her a 'wounded puppy dog' look which she instantly bought.

"That's what I thought." she grabbed on to him and took him out of the kitchen… leaving me alone with Rhonda once again.

"_Anyway_" Rhonda grabbed my collar and turned me towards her. "Back to you and me… why don't we get a game of truth or dare started?"

I felt myself getting nervous.. Partly because I've never actually _played_ truth or dare before… and the fact that Rhonda had her hands resting against my chest. Her face was less than six inches away from mine.

"I've never played before." I gulped loudly. "Maybe we should go um…. Mingle?"

"Together?" her face brightened.

I hesitated, slightly worried what 'together' would lead to.. "Sure Rhonda." I held my arm out, which she instantly grabbed on to. She took the lead and dragged me into the foyer where many of our classmates were still hanging out. She refused to let go of my arm, which I assumed meant she was parading me to everyone as 'hers'… we walked right past Sid and Stinky and a wave of guilt came over me. I knew Sid was watching.. Without warning, she shoved us into a linen closet and pressed me into the wall.

"I think I have the perfect dare for you Arnold." she pressed herself into me, her hands traveling south.. "I dare _you_ to come upstairs with me… I'm tired of dancing around the subject. I like you.. And I think you like me too. So lets do something about it."

My heart practically pounded through my chest. I could have sworn I could hear it pounding, even over the sound of Rhondas seductive humming in my ear. "I need to go to the bathroom!" I pushed her away from me and stumbled out of the closet.

"Way to go Arnold!" Harold and Curly patted my back as I ran past them.

Great, now I'll have to live down _that _rumor. I waved them off and continued sprinting through Rhondas house. I was only in search of one person.. I spotted Helga and Wolfgang on the dance floor. He was holding her close and staring at her intensely. I wanted to wait until they broke apart, but time wasn't on my side.

"HELGA!" I grabbed her and spun her around. "_Hide. Me.!_" I hid behind her in case Rhonda had followed me.

"Get lost!" Wolfgang pushed me with his powerful hands.

"Wolfgang!" Helga slapped his hands. "Wait for me upstairs.. Okay? We can talk up there. Just give me a few minutes." I received a death glare from Wolfgang who proceeded to push me roughly into Helga as he walked by. "Watch the hands football head!" I looked down and my hands were resting slightly above her hip bones. There was no time to feel embarrassed right now..

"Dance with me?" I offered, grabbing her hand and pulling her into the mass of dancing bodies. When I felt we had gotten far enough, I pulled her tightly and spun her in a few circles.

"Whoa!" she grabbed my shoulders for support. "Why are you hiding? What happened?" I kept glancing around for signs of Rhonda and continued moving with Helga. I turned her the opposite direction and held her closer which she instantly thwarted. "WHOA Arnoldo!" she turned to face me, our bodies pressed into each other.

"She tried to take me _upstairs_!" I gulped nervously. "So I told her I had to go to the bathroom.. And here I am." I spun her again for good measure.

"So you're just going to hide from her?" she scoffed. The song changed to something slower, so I grabbed her waist and pulled her closer to me. My mind was focusing on what would happen if and when Rhonda found me… what was I going to do? I felt Helgas hands leave my shoulders and wrap around my neck, pulling her slightly closer.

"I wanted to ask your opinion first.." I finally met her gaze, and realized how closely we were dancing…. Whoa..

"Do you have feelings for her?" she threw out before things got awkward.

"I don't feel all goofy when I'm around her.. But she _does_ make me nervous." which in all honesty, didn't make my predicament any easier..

"Well football head, I can't tell you what to do. But if you don't have feelings for her, then you should just tell her. Don't play with her feelings.." the song changed to something more upbeat, but neither of us moved "Get to it Arnold!" she grabbed the lapel of my suit and pulled me out of the crowd.

"Thanks for the advice… and the dance Helga" I cupped her hand in mine and placed a light kiss on the back of it before disappearing to find Rhonda. I hadn't really decided what was going to happen between us yet. I really wasn't sure if I felt _that_ way about her… I didn't know how to tell if I did for sure. I ended up finding Rhonda sitting at the bottom of the staircase looking slightly upset. "Hey.." I waved sheepishly before sitting next to her.

"Hey." she turned her face the other direction.

"I'm sorry about running off Rhonda… I just…. Don't know what's going on in my head right now." out of instinct, my hand reached out to grab hers. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."

She finally turned to look at our hands. "Do you _like_ me Arnold?" her gaze went from our hands to my eyes. "Even a little bit?"

"I-… I don't know. Maybe?" I was starting to feel that nervous feeling again. "You make me nervous." I admitted.

A small smile formed on her lips. "That's a start." she scooted over until our legs were touching. "Are you nervous right now?" she examined my sweating palms which were shaking profusely.

"Very." I nodded.

Her sweet smile suddenly turned seductive. A warm hand cupped my cheek and brought my face closer to hers. I began preparing myself to feel her lips against mine, but nothing happened. "_You're trembling_.." she laughed softly, her warm breath tickling my lips. "_Do you want to go upstairs Arnold?_"

It was a loaded question. Did I _really_ want to go upstairs and inevitably end up fooling around with Rhonda? And why was I shaking so badly? My heart was pounding loudly again and my senses were dulling. What did I have to lose? "_Okay.._" I whispered almost inaudibly. Rhonda looked completely flabbergasted after receiving my consent. Without another word, she held tightly on to my hand and took me upstairs. I was practically having a heart attack after ascending each step upstairs, it was like my mind couldn't process what I had just agreed to. I_ was going upstairs with RHONDA… _

When we reached the room, she dimmed the lights and shut the door behind us. I stood there awkwardly in the middle of the room, unsure of what was supposed to happen next. I could hardly make out her figure in the darkness, but I saw her walk over to what I assumed was a stereo because soft music began filling my ears. I jumped slightly when I felt a pair of hands rake across my shoulders then my chest, grabbing the lapel of my suit and pushing it off my shoulders and hitting the ground. She took my hand once again and pulled my over to her bed and sat me down while she stood in front of me. Her thighs suddenly came into contact with my hips as she straddled me. All of this suspense was adding to my nervousness..

"_Rhonda_.." I began to express my concern, but her finger gently shushed me. She promptly replaced her finger with her lips. It wasn't like any kiss I had ever received before…. It was filled with pure seduction. My eyes remained wide open in shock and I had yet to put much effort into the kiss. I was beginning to wonder if I could. I was too focused on her hands running through my hair and rubbing them over my chest. I was sincerely freaked out..

"_Kiss me Arnold._" she practically begged. "_Please_.."

I decided to let my guard drop if not just for that moment in time. I kissed her, allowing my eyes to close and placing my hands on her hips. Her kisses suddenly became more animalistic with my participation, she pushed me down against the bed and planted kisses along my jaw. She grabbed my shirt and ripped the buttons apart in one swift motion. "The suit was a rental!" I sat up slightly.

"I'll pay for it." she kissed me harshly and shoved me back on the bed. It was like she was on a mission, and nobody and nothing could stop her. I began to grunt my protest when she undid my belt and pulled down my zipper. "Don't worry." she muttered. "We'll go slow.."

Slow? Oh my _God_.. My mind began racing again, unsure if I should stop her. I guess I was enjoying her kisses, but 'going all the way' was out of the question. Rhonda wasn't even my girlfriend! She continued to put her hands everywhere I would allow her, and I was growing more uncomfortable by the second… I couldn't do this.

"Holy crap!" Wolfgangs voice boomed.

My eyes shot open and my arms flailed wildly, pushing Rhonda to the floor. After my eyes adjusted to the light, I noticed two figures in the doorway. Wolfgang,… and a very shocked Helga. "Helga?" I sat up slightly.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY ROOM?" Rhonda sat up on her knees and covered her partially exposed underwear. "GET OUT!"

Helgas eyes were filled with disappointment.. I could see it. "Gladly Princess.." she grabbed the door handle and slammed the door behind her, leaving me and Rhonda in the dark.

"God! The nerve of those two!" She got up on the bed and placed a small kiss to the side of my mouth.

"Rhonda.." I said between kisses. "I… can't… do this." her kisses instantly ceased.

"Why? Because of _them?_ Don't worry about it Arnold.."

"Rhonda… can I be honest with you?" I fiddled nervously with my now ravaged shirt. "The only thing I felt when we kissed…. Was _awkwardness._" I gave her an apologetic look. "I'm sorry Rhonda.."

"But you were enjoying it two minutes ago!" she pouted. "Are you kidding me?"

"Rhonda, it's nothing against you, okay? You're very… um… alluring? But I just don't feel the connection. The spark.. You know?"

"Arnold… is this about Helga?" she glared at me.

Why would this be about Helga? Where did that even come from?

"No Rhonda.. This is about me and you. I really wish I could reciprocate your feelings, you have _no_ idea. You're a beautiful girl with a lot to offer a guy."

"Can't you just try? Please Arnold!" She was making this difficult for me… and I could feel my will slipping away again.

"I can't promise you anything.. I can't guarantee I'll suddenly fall for you. But…" I sighed. "We can try going out sometime, okay? A date or something.."

Her eyes lit up and her arms wrapped around me. "Thank you Arnold! You're such a sweet guy… any girl would be lucky to have you." she leaned in for one more kiss which I reluctantly accepted.

"I should probably get going.." I sighed. "People might look at me funny if I have my shirt open like this." the buttons of my shirt lay scattered across the wood floor, and my jacket was laying in a big heap. "You threw an awesome party, I wont be forgetting it anytime soon." I smirked.

"Are you _sure_ you don't want to stay?" she bit her lip seductively.

"I'm sure.. But thanks." I pulled her off the bed. "I'll see you at school on Monday.. Okay?"

"Sure." she attempted to kiss me again, but I stuck my hand out for a handshake.

"Good night Rhonda." Surprisingly she accepted the fact that I wasn't staying, and allowed me to gather my discarded clothing and slip out undisturbed.

The party was still continuing downstairs, nobody was none the wiser about what happened between me and Rhonda… I had a feeling my disheveled state kind of gave it away though..

"ARNOLD?" Gerald had his mouth hanging open wide enough to fit a fist inside. "We need to talk!" He signaled Phoebe to wait for him in the kitchen, and we went out the front door. "What did you _do_ man? You look like you just…. _did_ something!"

"I may have.. Made out? A little bit…" I knew I was blushing at that point.

"WITH WHO?" he grabbed my shoulders "….._was it Helga?_" he whispered so low that I almost missed it.

"WHAT?" I jumped nearly half a foot in the air. "NO! Oh my GOD… NO! How could you even think that?"

"I saw Helga running out of here looking all upset! I was just asking! So if it wasn't her… then who was it?"

Helga was upset? _Why?_ I wonder if something happened with Wolfgang?

"ARNOLD!" he shook me. "Who the hell did you make out with?"

"The hostess.." I covered my eyes and groaned. "But when Helga and Wolfgang caught us, I had already decided that it was wrong! I knew it was a mistake!"

"Helga and Wolfgang saw you making out with Rhonda?" Gerald looked completely baffled. "Wow…" he wrapped an arm around my shoulder. "You my friend, have got a pretty screwed up situation here."

"You think I don't know that?" I groaned even louder. "Helga looked so disappointed in me.."

"I saw you two getting pretty _intimate_ on the dance floor earlier."

"EW! Gerald, it wasn't like that… I was asking her for advice, and I was trying to hide from Rhonda" leave it to Gerald to think dirty.. Ugh.

"So are you and Rhonda friends with benefits now or what?"

"No Gerald… I told her I'd maybe go on a date with her sometime, but I didn't see us going anywhere anytime soon."

"What about Helga?" he said in an all too familiar tone. He used it every time he mentioned 'the box', and why I didn't throw it out.

"What _about _Helga?"

"Are you two just going to sweep this one under the carpet?"

That was something that hadn't crossed my mind yet. Would she tell everyone she caught me and Rhonda upstairs? Would Wolfgang tell?… I guess I needed to talk to her no matter how awkward it was going to be.

"Look, I'm going to stop by Helgas and see if she's home.. You go back in there and party like its 1999." I joked. "I'll call you tomorrow."

"Good luck my man. You're going to need it."

I ended up taking the bus and getting off about half a block from Helgas place. The street lights were on, and nobody was outside anymore. The only sounds that could be heard were my footsteps against the pavement, and the leaves crackling underneath me. It almost reminded me of a horror movie scenario…_almost_. The lights were off at Helgas place, but I decided to knock anyway. I received no response whatsoever.. But I could hear someone rustling upstairs. I had already taken a risk once tonight, I figured I might as well take another one. There was a fire escape that lead to the window the noise came from.. I took the steps as quietly as possible and crouched down at the window, tapping it with my knuckle. "_Helga?_" I whispered. "_Helga!_" a door opened inside, and a light came on. I jumped back when Helga opened the curtain. Her hair was disheveled and her clothes were partially torn in places.

"What the hell football head?" she growled. "Get lost!"

"Can I at least come in? Its kind of cold in case you hadn't noticed." my shirt was still ripped open after all..

Without another word, she unlocked the window and lifted it open. I ungracefully fell through head first on to her floor. "Ow.." I muttered.

"What are you doing here Arnold? I figured you would be rolling around under Rhondas satin sheets by now.."

"Stop." I sighed. "That's why I'm here, okay?"

"I don't want to hear about your romp with _Rhonda_" she seethed, taking a seat at the foot of her bed.

"Things went too far with me and Rhonda tonight.. You know I'm not that type of guy." I sat next to her.

"I don't know who you are anymore football head… not after tonight." she turned her body harshly in the other direction.

"Helga" I touched her shoulder "what's wrong? And why are your clothes all tattered?" I glanced down at her arm and noticed a vertical cut on her bicep. "Did Wolfgang _hurt_ you?" my blood began to boil as I stood up.

"WHAT?" she stared at the small cut on her arm. "You think Wolfgang would actually _hurt_ me? I got this after Wolfgang dropped me off, stupid." I knelt down in front of her so she would look at me.

"Why did you leave the party tonight?"

Her eyes finally met mine, and I could see the dried tears on her cheeks. "Wolfgang told me he loved me.. And I panicked."

"So you didn't say it back? Was he upset?" I angled my head to keep eye contact with her.

"He was perfectly fine with me not saying it back. I just sort of… snapped I guess. I even tore up part of my floor, which is where the cut came from." she ran her finger over the dried blood. "It was stupid of me.. I broke my own promise."

"Promise?"

"It's not important." she sighed. "But now I opened Pandora's box back up.." her hand brushed my cheek, tears began filling her eyes. "…And I don't know if I can close it again." a few stray tears began falling.

What the heck was she talking about? It was cryptic, and making my head spin. I wrapped my arms around her and offered what comfort I could. "It's okay.." my hand pet the top of her head.

Her lips softly brushed against my cheek, adding to my confusion. "_I missed you_" she cried a little harder and buried her head into my shoulder.

"Helga, I never left! What are you talking about?" I pulled away so I could look at her. "_I was always right here_.." I whispered soothingly.

"Quit reminding me.." the tears continued to fall from her crystal blue eyes.

"I'm confused.." I wiped the tears from her cheeks. "What are you talking about?"

"You need to go.. Before I do something crazy." she sniffed and pushed me away slightly. "Please Arnold.."

"Helga? Why won't you tell me what's going on? And what do you mean by 'do something crazy'?.." I moved closer to her once again.

Her hands grabbed my shoulders and traveled to my neck, and finally resting on my cheeks. "_This_…" our lips collided before everything faded to black..

* * *

**All I can say is: ****wow****. Lol… I really didn't know where this chapter was heading, and I'm just as surprised as you guys. XD and NO, the story isn't over! What kind of author would I be if I ended things here? *scoff* lol.. The next chapter will hopefully be along sometime soon. I'm not on any type of writing schedule, I just write as it comes to me!**


	7. Our lips are sealed

**Disclaimer: yeah yeah, I don't own Hey Arnold. Lol. XD**

* * *

**_(**Two Months Later**)- December_**

**Helgas POV:**

I would like to think I'm a master of keeping secrets. I consider it a blessing and a curse. I've kept my mouth shut many times before, and I had absolutely no problem with it. But as I've grown older, I find that the bigger the secret the bigger the repercussions are from keeping it. Wolfgang is a 260 pound football player, Arnold is a 150 pound waiter at the local eatery… see the problem yet? Though it haunts me every single day, I still haven't told Wolfgang what happened between me and Arnold that night in October. Quite frankly, I don't know if I _can_… Knowing it could possibly kill Wolfgang, and knowing he would probably pound Arnolds face in until his teeth came out of his ears.

It's finally almost winter break here in Hillwood, I couldn't be more happy about it. We would be getting two weeks off from school, which meant two weeks of not having to see Arnold. We had been avoiding each other like the plague ever since that night. Nobody really had the guts to ask _why_ we were, but our friends knew that something wasn't right. Wolfgang on the other hand, was _very_ pleased to be rid of his so called nemesis. I chose to ignore the fact that he didn't really care that Arnold being out of my life was bugging me. I had more pressing concerns at the moment.. Like sex ed. Today was the final Friday of the semester, and then we'd be free for vacation. Our health teacher decided that _today_ would be a fantastic day to go over sexual health since new years was just around the corner, and teens were going to be partying.

"And for those of you who aren't familiar with this.." she held up a small square "This is a condom." several students moved awkwardly in their seats…myself included. When she ripped the package open and pulled out the rubber device, all movements ceased. And that's when she pulled out the banana.

From where I was sitting, I could see the bright shade of red that Arnold had turned. Just mentioning sex around him got him flustered. I can usually handle the whole 'sex talk'.. but _this_ was just awkward. It was worse than an after school special.

"To properly apply a condom, you must always make sure to pinch the air from the tip, and roll the condom down the shaft-"

_Oh my GOD… she just said 'shaft'… ew ew ew ew ew…_ _kill me._

"_I'm never going to be able to eat a banana again._" Arnold covered his eyes solemnly. If he and I were on speaking terms, I would have agreed with him.

"_mm mm mm.." _Gerald shook his head. "_Damn.._"

"Wilikers!" Stinky made no attempt to keep his thoughts private.

"_Is it weird that I'm craving a banana right now?_" Sid whispered.

"_Are you trying to tell us something?_" I nudged him.

"_Shut up Helga! Can't you see I'm learning about condoms here?" _Gerald tried his hardest to look sincere.

"Now now!" Mrs. Stover clapped her hands together. "I know that this is a hard pill to swallow at your age, but its important you know these things. You never know when this knowledge may come in handy" she put the condom covered banana back on her desk. "Now I would like each of you to take one of the brochures I've left at the door. It is a pamphlet pertaining to teenage sexual health, and there's also a condom inside."

Gerald instantly raised his hand. "Is the condom lubricant water based, or oil?" the whole class erupted into laughter. "What? I'm being serious! Ya'll shut up!"

"Gerald, I think you're the only one who's concerned about _condom lubricant_!" I slapped his back. The others continued to laugh, but Arnold didn't laugh at my joke… he stared ahead with a stern look on his face. I guess subtle ignoring wasn't his thing. And on that sour note, the last bell rang. Everyone filed out and grabbed a pamphlet as they exited. "_Reproduction and Me._" I read the title of the pamphlet out loud. "Are you kidding me? This is crap!"

"It's just a pamphlet Helga." Gerald hung an arm around my shoulder. "And its not like its something _new_ to you… right?" he was always looking for an opportunity to ask me if I had done 'the nasty', as he put it, with Wolfgang.

"I'm ignoring your thinly veiled question bucko. And who said you could touch me?" I wiggled away from him. "Would your faith in me be restored if I offered you my condom?" I smirked.

Before he could answer, Phoebe slapped his arm. "Gerald! Quit bugging Helga about it. It's her life.." she pushed the pamphlet back into my hand. "I'm sorry about him Helga." I shrugged and put the condom in my pocket. I figured me and Wolfgang could laugh about it later.

"It's okay Phoebs. He's a guy.. All they think about is sex." I made sure and said it loud enough for Arnold to hear. He was standing a few feet behind us, acting like he wasn't listening to the conversation. "Anyway.. I'm meeting Wolfgang at his truck right now, but give me a call sometime over the break! We can hang out.. Just the two of us." I put a sense of urgency in my voice, hoping she would realize I needed to talk to someone.

"Sure Helga. I'll call you when I get back from my aunts house. We're spending Christmas in Kentucky." she offered a friendly hug which I gladly accepted.

"_Thanks Phoebs_" I whispered. "See you Gerald" we fist bumped. I decided to test the waters and walked over to Arnold. "See you around football head?"

His body had visibly tensed when I approached him. His eyes remained focused on the floor and his hands clutched nervously to his backpack. It was the first words we had exchanged in nearly two months. "Yeah.." he finally looked up at me. "See you around Helga.."

My heart began pounding wildly when our eyes met. I hated that he still had the same effect on me after all these years… and I hate that I let myself feel that way again. It was just a simple slip up… nothing more. I had to keep telling myself that if I wanted to continue my relationship with Wolfgang. He was the one who loved me… and I was still deciding how I felt.

We both awkwardly waved our goodbyes and went our separate ways. I bundled myself up in my winter coat and made the journey to Wolfgangs truck. He was already inside with the heater on when I reached him. "Hey!" he greeted me when I plopped down unceremoniously in the passenger seat. "How was class?" he blew into his hands in an attempt to warm them.

"Dumb." I concluded. "How about you?"

"Same here. But I'm glad we're on vacation. I get to spend more time with you!" he leaned over and kissed me. As soon as his lips brushed against mine, my thoughts went back to October… _his_ lips against mine… I pulled away from the kiss a little more harshly than I intended. "Are you okay?" his brow furrowed in confusion.

"I'm fine." I assured. "I'm just ready to get out of here." I gave the most convincing smile I could muster.

We went back to his place to watch movies, it was becoming a weekend tradition for us. I enjoyed it because we sat in mostly silence for a few hours. I know it was an avoidance technique, but Wolfgang didn't seem to notice. It was also kind of funny to make a big tough guy like Wolfgang watch movies like 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'The Lion King'. Today I had settled for an action flick so Wolfgang would be happy. We curled up on his bed with a bowl of popcorn and watched in silence. When the popcorn had been consumed, Wolfgang moved the bowl so he could wrap his arm around me. "Helga?" his voice made me jump.

"Yeah?" I yawned.

"This movie isn't really keeping my attention.." he repositioned himself so he was hovering over me.

"So what do you want to do?" I smirked, knowing damn well what he wanted.

"You're really going to make me ask?" he groaned. "Can we please make out?" his bottom lip stuck out. "Please?"

Of course Wolfgang knew I was teasing him by making him 'beg' for it. He knew he really _didn't _have to ask me.. "I'll think about it." I attempted to roll away but Wolfgang was faster. His fingers began tickling my sides mercilessly. "Stop!" I cackled. "You bastard!" his hands gripped my hips and pulled me down further into the pillows. He was completely hovered over me at this point. "_Payback is going to be a bitch_" I whispered.

"_It can wait_" he leaned in closer to my face. My lips barely touched his before I felt his fingers begin tickling me again. I couldn't help but laugh like a fool as he tickled my ribs. I attempted to break free by thrashing around wildly, but in the midst of my thrashing.. The condom fell out of my pocket. Both of our hands reached for it at the same moment. "Why do you have a condom?" he held it between his index and middle fingers.

"They gave them to us in class today." I shrugged. "I was going to throw it away." I grabbed it from him and studied it.

"Did you _want_ to throw it out?" an uneasy feeling erupted in my stomach… I had a feeling I knew where this was going.

"Wolfgang, are you asking me if I want to have sex?"

His eyes widened "well… um.. I'm not pressuring or anything. You know I wouldn't do that. I'm just asking… I mean, our one year anniversary is coming up. I trust you, and I would hope you trust me. And you already know that I love you Helga.."

His words cut me like a knife.. He actually _trusts_ me. He put undeserved faith in me… and he loves me without a second thought. He deserved to know the truth..

"Wolfgang…" I took a deep breath "there's something I need to tell you."

* * *

_**(**Flashback**)**_

'_Arnold my soul, you are always in my heart. Love Helga G. Pataki'_

_I don't know how long I had been laying there on the floor. My hand still clutched tightly on to the locket that had been haunting me like the tell-tale heart. An all too familiar smiling face was watching me peacefully from inside his golden chamber. His half lidded eyes and debonair grin were soothing the inner savage beast that had just torn up the floor. "What have I done?" I sobbed uncontrollably. "Oh Arnold! I broke my sacred vow. I swore that I must forsake you so you could finally be free from this madness! My darling football headed angel… what am I going to do?" I placed a kiss against his picture. "I need to right this wrong…" I put the locket back inside the book. "I can't see you anymore!"_

"_Helga?" a small knock came from outside. "Helga!"_

"_What the heck?" I set the book on the floor and exited the closet, turning a light on. I hesitated slightly before opening the curtain. Before my very eyes, Arnold was kneeling at my window. "What the hell football head?" I hissed. "get lost!"_

"_Can I at least come in? Its kind of cold in case you hadn't noticed." _

_Maybe if you hadn't let Princess Rhonda ravage your shirt…ugh. And against my better judgment, I unlocked and opened the window. He stuck his head inside and lost his balance and ended up tumbling inside. "Ow." he groaned._

"_What are you doing here Arnold? I figured you would be rolling around under Rhondas satin sheets by now.." I spat angrily._

"_Stop." he sighed. "That's why I'm here, okay?"_

"_I don't want to hear about your romp with __**Rhonda**__" I plopped down on the edge of my bed._

"_Things went too far with me and Rhonda tonight.. You know I'm not that type of guy." he took a seat next to me. His closeness was making my palms sweat.. If he got much closer I was going to snap._

"_I don't know who you are anymore football head… not after tonight." I forced my body in the opposite direction of him._

"_Helga" his warm hand cupped my shoulder. _"_what's wrong? And why are your clothes all tattered?….. Did Wolfgang __**hurt**__ you?" _

"_WHAT?" I glanced down at the small cut on my arm. "You think Wolfgang would actually __**hurt **__me? I got this after Wolfgang dropped me off, stupid." _

_The idiot actually got down on the floor so he could look at me. "Why did you leave the party tonight?"_

_I looked cautiously at him before meeting his eyes… If I could be honest with one person, it was Arnold. "Wolfgang told me he loved me.. And I panicked."_

"_So you didn't say it back? Was he upset?" his head cocked sideways._

"_He was perfectly fine with me not saying it back. I just sort of… snapped I guess. I even tore up part of my floor, which is where the cut came from." my finger subconsciously rubbed the dry blood. "It was stupid of me.. I broke my own promise." my lips pursed together.. WHY did I just admit that?_

"_Promise?" his brow furrowed._

"_It's not important." I felt the tears returning again "But now I opened Pandora's box back up.." my hand gained a mind of its own and brushed against his cheek. "…And I don't know if I can close it again." those damn tears began falling. I instantly felt like an idiot for showing my weak side._

_Without any hesitation on his part, he wrapped his arms around me "It's okay.." he held me tightly against him and pet my head. His actions were kind and sweet, but they were becoming my downfall.. I couldn't stop myself.._

_My lips connected with his cheek "I missed you" my sobs intensified._

"_Helga, I never left! What are you talking about?" he pulled away to get a better look at me. _"_I was always right here_.."_ the tone of his voice had finally set me off.. If he didn't get out of here __**now**_, _I was going to do something I'd end up regretting._

"_Quit reminding me.." I warned._

"_I'm confused.." his thumbs gently wiped away the tears "What are you talking about?"_

"_You need to go.. Before I do something crazy" I pushed him away "Please Arnold…" _

"_Helga? Why won't you tell me what's going on? And what do you mean by 'do something crazy'?.." his hands rested against my lower thighs.. That was the last straw. _

_My hands felt his chest and traveled to his cheeks. "This." my fingers linked around his neck and brought his lips to mine. Fireworks exploded behind my eyes and I swear I could feel the earth move beneath us. I let out a soft moan and pulled him closer to me, pulling him up off the floor and hovering over me. His body was as stiff as a board, and his lips were stagnant.. It was almost too familiar of a situation. I moved my lips a little harsher against his, begging for any type of response. Just as I was about to pull away…. It happened. His lips began moving against mine. Not quite as hungrily as my attempts had been.. But there was no doubt about it, he was kissing me back. I grabbed his collar and pulled him on to the bed with me. Our bodies crashed into each other when we hit the mattress. _

_The jolt must have knocked him back into reality. The moment he landed on top of me, he let out a loud gasp as if someone had punched his gut. "HELGA!" he rolled off of me and landed on the floor with a loud thud._

"_Arnold?" I sat back up with a bemused expression on my face. Did we really just do what I think we did?_

"_What the heck just happened?" he shot back up to his feet. "Why did you kiss me? Have you lost your mind?"_

"_Excuse me?" I glared at him. "Watch your tone football head!" I pet a few of my stray hairs down. "Nothing happened." I concluded._

"_No Helga!" his voice cracked. "Something WEIRD just happened!"_

_My kisses are weird… great._

"_I told you to leave Arnold.." I fell back against the mattress and groaned. "I WARNED YOU."_

_He paced back and forth nervously, almost resembling a caged tiger. He must have been collecting his thoughts. After a few moments of silence, he took a deep breath and pulled me back up. "You kissed me.." he stayed fairly calm. "Why?"_

"_Because I'm stupid." I buried my face in my palms._

"_No. You're not!" he pulled my hands away from my face. "Why Helga?… Why did you do it?"_

"_Why did you kiss me back?" I retorted._

"_Don't change the subject." he scowled. "Look Helga.. I'm not mad, okay? I just want to know what's going on. You don't go around kissing people for no reason"_

"_I've had a rough night, okay? Wolfgang proclaims he loves me, and when I try and escape from him I catch you and Rhonda groping each other! And when I try and calm myself down, YOU show up at my house and try and comfort me… I was freaked out, okay? This whole thing has me SCARED… no boy has ever loved me before. And when I kissed you, I was reaching for something familiar to hold on to…. So I ended up freakin kissing you! I'm sorry, okay?" I hadn't realized that a few stray tears had fallen during my little tirade._

"_Helga.." he knelt down next to me again. "I'm sorry-"_

"_STOP COMFORTING ME!" I pushed him roughly to the ground. "That's what started this! I don't need you to be my knight in shining armor!" I buried my face in my palms and began sobbing. I was ashamed of myself… I had technically cheated on my boyfriend, and to make it worse… it was with Arnold. The boy I used to be madly in love with. His kiss had awakened something inside of me that I had tried to hard to kill…_

"_Stop pushing me away!" he grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet, and forced me into a bear hug. My face was crushed into his neck, and hot tears continued to fall. "I'm so sorry Helga.." he whispered._

"_Why?" I hiccupped. "You didn't do anything! This is all my doing.."_

"_I was pushing too hard Helga… The kiss was my fault. You warned me and I didn't listen."_

"_You never listen." I rubbed my head further into his neck. "Its one of the things I used to love about you.." I could feel his laughter rumbling from his throat and down to his chest. I was getting a __**very**__ bad urge to kiss him again.. I tried pulling away, but his grip only tightened. The smell of his skin was almost intoxicating me… it was making me loopy. "Arnold.." I hummed into his neck, he responded with his own hum.. God, he was killing me! Its like he was giving me permission to be an idiot. My lips pressed into his neck, and I began placing open mouthed kisses against his skin._

"_Helga?" his hands started shaking at the small of my back. "W-what are you doing?"_

"_Je t'aime" I whispered between kisses.. "Je veux que vous"_

"_I don't speak French?… Helga, we really shouldn't-" my lips finally reached his cheek. "Helga." he sternly grabbed my shoulders. "This can't happen. Okay? You have a BOYFRIEND.. Remember him? The one who loves you?…. Guess what? I'm not him." his words shredded me like a garbage disposal.. Though he didn't mean for it to sound like it did.. It still hurt. Hearing Arnold say (indirectly) that he didn't love me was like receiving a third degree burn._

"_Tu brise mon coeur .. à nouveau." the English words were too painful to say._

"_Talk to me in English Helga… please." he stepped a little further away in anticipation that I might decide to pounce on him again. My blood began to boil.._

"_Why can't you be a normal guy, HUH? Why do you have to be sensitive and nice all the time? You're always doing the right thing and trying to help everyone out.. I'M SICK OF IT! Its like you can do no wrong! Arnold: the perfect male specimen. You sicken me! I hate y-" in the blink of an eye, I was pinned harshly to the wall and a pair of lips were against mine. I let out a small cry of shock and confusion as his hands held my wrists to the wall and he continued to kiss me savagely. My lips were surely going to be bruised in the morning. His kiss became less intense after a minute, and started becoming a little more steamy… __**sexy**__ even.. But as soon as it began, it ended. He pulled his mouth away and rested his forehead against mine._

"_Don't ever call me perfect." he panted and opened his eyes. I think the severity of what he just did had finally hit him. His pupils dilated and his body shook. "Oh… my…. GOD!" he released my wrists and jumped back at least two feet. "Helga, I'm sorry! Oh my God… OH MY GOD!" he ran his fingers through his hair and tugged on the ends. "What did I just do?" he muttered to himself._

"_Arnold!" I grabbed him. "Take a breather! We need to discuss this calmly.."_

"_I need to get out of here!" He reached the windowsill before I grabbed him again. "Helga let me go! This was obviously one big HUGELY MASSIVE mistake. If Wolfgang ever found out… oh God!" _

"_STOP IT!" I roared. "You're really just going to walk out right now? After everything that just happened?"_

"_Helga.. This whole night was a sign. We need to be apart! Rhonda wants me, and Wolfgang wants you. Its as simple as that."_

"_You have no feelings for me… at all?"_

_He paused for what seemed like an eternity "You're my friend.. And nothing more."_

"_Then why did you kiss me?" my eyes began watering. I felt like the weakest human being in the world._

"_Because I'm a stupid, irresponsible guy… I let my hormones get the better of me and I'm truly sorry for that. I didn't mean to do what I did..." he sat on the ledge and moved his legs over the side. "I think it would be best if we spent some time apart… Maybe not forever, but just until this can blow over." he pulled himself through the window and knelt in front of it. "I won't tell anyone if you don't."_

"_Fine." I slammed the window harshly and shut the curtains in his face. I threw myself on to my bed and bawled my eyes out. I hated him, but mostly I hated myself for being vulnerable enough to allow this to happen. I was happy with Wolfgang! It should be everything to me… and Wolfgang loves me! Arnold couldn't even bear the thought of kissing me._

_A loud vibration sound filled the room and a bright light emitted from my phone. I picked it up and saw 'one new message' written across the screen._

'_I hope you're feeling better. Call me in the morning? Sleep well. XOXO' and it was signed with Wolfgangs number at the bottom._

_How could I ever look him the eye again after tonight?_

* * *

_**(**Present Day**)**_

"Well?" Wolfgang looked at me expectantly. "What is it?"

The condom was still resting in my palm while my hand shook nervously. If I told Wolfgang what _really_ happened that night, our relationship would be over.. And I didn't want it to end. But what did that mean exactly?

"Wolfgang… I-" my mouth suddenly felt dry.

"You?"

My pulse quickened and I felt extremely sick. "I love you!" I blurted out before my mind could process it.

We sat on opposite ends of the bed, staring at each other. He looked completely dumbfounded.. And I felt like I just got hit by a truck. "Did you just say you _love_ me?" he grinned. "HELGA! This is… perfect!" he crawled over to me and kissed me intensely. "I love you too… so much" he sighed. "I'm still not going to pressure you into using the condom, okay? I'm willing to wait forever.. As long as I have you, nothing matters."

At that moment, I felt like the lowest human being in the world. My boyfriend of nearly a year was staring into my eyes and claiming his undying love for me… and all I could think about was kissing a certain football headed boy we both know. Nothing I could ever do would make up for what I did.. And no words could ever make it right. I cheated on Wolfgang.. I betrayed him…. And I ruined _everything._

"I'm just not ready for that." I avoided his gaze. "Maybe sometime in the future things could be different."

"It's fine." wrapped his arms around me protectively. "I love you Helga."

"I love you too.." my heart sank deeper into a pit of disaster.

* * *

****Fun Fact: The next chapter is callled "Loose lips and flying fists"..hehe...****


	8. Loose lips and flying fists

**I still don't get many reviews on here.. But I'm trying my hardest not to take it personally. Lol. This is seriously my FAVORITE fan fiction that I've ever written. I don't need reviews to validate it ;) This is by far the LONGEST fic I have ever written (and its not even over yet!), and I take great pride in my work. I know I'm not a professional writer, but I enjoy what I'm doing here. If I make just ONE person smile, that's more than enough gratification for me. I'm here to have fun!**

**As for the storyline, Arnold is still in denial. Helga is confused, and Gerald is a slight pervert. *sigh* good times.. Lol. And I'm sorry if you don't enjoy the time jumps, but this story would end up being 900 chapters long without them.. **

**Disclaimer: Hey Arnold belongs to the awesome-tastic Mr. Craig Bartlett ;)**

* * *

_**(**Two Months Later**)-February**_

**Arnolds POV:**

"I can't take it anymore! I JUST CAN'T!" Helga burst into my bedroom like a hurricane and started discarding her winter jacket, beanie and gloves on my floor.

I lowered the book I was reading down to my lap and studied the frantically pacing girl in front of me. "Nice to see you too." I chuckled. "What's going on?"

She tossed herself on to my couch and kicked her feet angrily before rolling over towards the ceiling. "It's Wolfgang!" she sighed. "He's driving me insane."

"Are you guys fighting?" I put a bookmark inside my book and tossed it to the foot of my bed.

"No _football head_.. We aren't fighting! And that's the problem.."

"You're saying you actually _want_ conflict?" even I had to laugh at how ridiculous that sounded.

"You're a dimwit." she growled. "NO, I don't want to fight with him… you don't get it! Wolfgang is pretty darn close to the textbook definition of a perfect boyfriend." She sat up and finally looked at me. It was only then that I noticed she was wearing something different… her pink bow.

"I'm not following you.." I shrugged. "what's so wrong about having a good boyfriend?" I tried to pretend like I hadn't noticed the bow on top of her head.

"Have you ever achieved perfection?" she scooted closer to the edge of the couch so her feet were touching the ground.

"I can honestly say I haven't.." I still didn't really get where she was going with this.

"Perfection obtained is…. Unsettling." she took a deep breath. "I have a wonderful boyfriend, I get good grades.. And I have amazing friends."

_Don't forget a blowhard dad, and a drunk mother. _I bit my lip to hold back my own personal thoughts..

"It's been bugging me for months now… and I'm just now realizing that I'm not happy. I, Helga G Pataki am extremely unhappy.." she got up from the couch and moved to the bed to sit next to me. "I don't want a cookie cutter existence.. I don't want perfection. I want to be challenged! You know? I want a reason to wake up in the morning… I want someone by my side to keep me on my toes."

"Have you talked to Wolfgang about this?" I readjusted myself so I was facing her.

"Oh yeah, I can see how that conversation would go! '_hey Wolfgang, can you be a little less perfect?'_.. geez football head.. Get a clue."

"Helga… if you're unhappy then you should break things off with Wolfgang. If you _honestly_ believe things can't get better… You deserve to be happy! You deserve someone who makes you feel.."

"Alive." she finished for me.

"Yeah.." I rubbed the back of my neck. "So what are you going to do?"

"The right thing to do isn't always the thing we _want _to do.." she blew out a long stream of air and caused her bangs to fly up.

"What do you want to do?" I asked, knowing darn well that it was an extremely loaded question with a vast number of scary responses.

"I want to be with someone who makes me feel alive.." she kept her gaze focused on the back of her right hand. "…but I don't think he wants me." her eyes slowly met mine.

"How do you know for sure?" a small nervous feeling began growing in the pit of my stomach.

"Because he keeps pushing me away.." she began looking in the other direction, but my hand darted out and cupped her chin to hold it in place.

"Maybe he's scared.." my thumb gently rubbed her cheek.

She closed her eyes and sighed deeply at my touch. "Arnold.." she mumbled. "I hate to burst this little sub-textural bubble we've created… but I think we're both on the same page, and we shouldn't keep avoiding it." her eyes slowly opened and met mine. I lowered my hand from her face and felt myself shudder.

"… I'm scared." it felt kind of vindicating to finally admit it. "I'm afraid of what's going to happen between us.."

A small smile formed on her lips and tears began wetting the corners of her eyes. "You're not the only one.." her hand cupped my cheek. "_I never stopped loving you_" she whispered.

"Helga.." I placed my hands firmly on the bed, bracing myself for what I was about to say. "I… I think I'm… _in lo_-"

**HEY ARNOLD! HEY ARNOLD! HEY ARNOLD! HEY ARNOLD! HEY-**

I let out a loud gasp and clutched my chest as I shot up from my bed… it was a dream. It was a _stupid_ dream! Ugh… That was the fourth time I had that dream in the past month! I unplugged my alarm clock and let out a long, drawn out yawn. I had spent most of the night finishing my English assignment that was due today. We had to do one of those 'where do you see yourself in ten years?' essays. Today we had to present them in front of the class, to say I was dreading it would be an understatement. I was never really a big fan of oral presentations.

"Good morning grandpa! Good morning grandma!" I ran through the kitchen and kissed grandma on the cheek before grabbing a piece of toast and placing it between my teeth. "I gotta run! I'm late." I mumbled through a mouthful of toast. "BYE!"

"Have a good day at school Kimba!" Grandma waved her spatula in the air.

"Stay out of trouble Shortman!" Grandpa winked.

Whatever _that_ is supposed to mean…

Gerald pulled up right on schedule with Phoebe. "Hey guys." I hopped into the backseat. Gerald waved over his shoulder and Phoebe greeted me in Japanese. After our initial greetings, none of us had much to say. Our ride to school was mostly silent. My mind was still trying to process the freakish nightmare I kept having… why did I keep dreaming about _that?_.. it was disturbing.

"The soul train ends here." Gerald put his car in park. "Back to the old grind."

"You're much too cynical Gerald!" Phoebe grabbed his hand.

"Its too early for big words." he muttered.

"Thanks for the ride lovebirds." I chuckled, and exited the car. They always seemed to get into arguments during the early hours of the day. Gerald wasn't a morning person, and Phoebe was always like a wound up Chihuahua in the morning. The combination of the two was always amusing..

"Hey Arnold! Wait up!" Wolfgang came running down the path, pushing people out of his way.

"Hey.." I continued walking when he caught up to me. "What's up?" the first thing I noticed was that Helga wasn't with him.. Which was strange.

"Well, Helga isn't going to be here today. She's taking her SATs all day, and we have that essay due today."

"Uh huh.." I paused. "What does that have to do with me?"

"Helga always reads over my essays before I hand them in.. and since this one is supposed to be presented to the class I could really use another set of eyes and ears. Please Arnold?" he pressed his hands together pleadingly.

"Well.." I hesitated..

"I'll buy you lunch!" he threw his arm around my shoulders and continued walking. "It'll be like bonding… but not…" he added. "So what do you say? Lunch at Slausens?"

I really couldn't turn him down now. He was practically begging for help, and his main source of encouragement was unavailable. "Alright Wolfgang.. I'll take a look at it during lunch."

"Awesome! I'll meet you in the parking lot after the bell. You're a lifesaver dude!" he punched my arm and took off to his first class.

God help me, I was having a lunch date with Wolfgang… and I think he just broke my arm.

* * *

It wasn't as awkward as I thought it was going to be. Wolfgang and I sat on opposite sides of the booth at Slausens as we ate our lunch. After I had finished my club sandwich he slid some papers across the table. "I want your honest opinion." he took a long slurp from his milkshake. "Don't hold back."

"Okay.." I picked up the essay and began reading it. Aside from the punctuation errors, the essay wasn't too bad. He went on and on about his future with football, and living in California. But as I got towards the end of the essay, something caught my eye.

"_As for marriage and kids, I hope to marry my girlfriend Helga Pataki. I would love to have at least four or five kids. Helga would be a stay at home mom, and would always be there to support me in my endeavors. She'd make the perfect trophy wife! She's completely gorgeous, and looks good next to me. Every football player deserves his trophy.."_

Oh GOD.. A trophy wife? HELGA? She always said she dreamed of traveling the world, and becoming the first female president. Did Wolfgang really think she would be willing to settle for _his _vision of the future? I slid the essay back over to him and cleared my throat. "Well.. That was.. Interesting."

"Interesting bad? Or interesting good?" he leaned against the table and stared at me.

"It's not _bad_ Wolfgang.. Its good enough to get a passing grade anyway."

"Awesome! Thanks for your help dude." he tossed the papers back into his backpack and his cell phone began ringing. "Hey!" his tone changed completely. "Nothing, I'm just here with Arnold at Slausens… he was helping me with my essay… I miss you too." I looked away awkwardly from the lovesick meathead. He's lucky he didn't know the truth… _very_ lucky. I probably wouldn't be alive right now if he did. He made a kissing noise into the phone and hung up. "So are you ready to go?" he went back to his usual gruff tone.

"Yeah.." we slid out of the booth and went back to his truck.

"So what are you doing for Valentines day?" Wolfgang broke the silence on the way back to school. "Any plans?" If I had been female, I would think he was asking me on a date.. Ew.

"Nope.. Not really. Gerald and Phoebe are going out, and my friends and I don't really…um.. Hang out for that holiday."

"It would be kind of gay" he grinned. "You aren't going out with Rhonda?" I had forgotten that he'd seen me and Rhonda kissing at the Halloween party.

"We aren't together." I protested.

"You should invite her to the Valentines day carnival they're having downtown! Me and Helga are going.. We could double." I suddenly felt very awkward at the thought of having to double date with Helga..

"Why are you being so nice to me Wolfgang? I thought you hated me.. Double dating is something that buddies do."

"Helga says I need more guy friends." he stared thoughtfully out the window. "Ever since Ludwig moved, I haven't really had many guy friends… Edmund doesn't really count. He turned into an AV club nerd and since then we haven't really talked." I didn't remember Wolfgang being so shallow before..

"So you don't consider me a nerd?"

"Helga likes you." I felt my heart stop. "and if she thinks you're cool, then I'm down with that. You seem alright.."

"Would Helga want to do this whole double date thing? We haven't hung out much.." that was a total understatement. Its more like: 'we kind of made out behind your back, and now we can't even speak to each other because I'd rather keep my bones intact'

"I'll talk with her about it, it'll be fine! Just invite Rhonda to the carnival. I'll take care of the rest." Why was I getting a bad feeling about all of this?

I walked into my health class with a knot it my stomach.. Since Valentines day was this weekend, I had to ask Rhonda to the carnival today. As usual, she was filing her nails and popping her gum noisily and humming a tune to herself. "Hey Rhonda.." I tried to act as smooth as possible. I wasn't really an expert when it came to asking girls out.

"Hi Arnold." she was using her sensual voice… she was going to make this easy for me!

"How are you?" I leaned closely to her desk, staring at her with half lidded eyes.

"Even better now that I'm talking to you." she grinned.

"This might be coming out of left field.. But what are you doing for Valentines day?" I jumped in head first, it was better to rip the bandage off in one swipe.

"Are you asking me out?" her smile got even wider.

"Yes.. Yes I am." I paused. "But there's a catch."

"What?" she looked slightly less pleased.

"It's a double date with Wolfgang and Helga.."

"Oh." she drummed her fingers against the desk. I should have known she wouldn't agree.. "Okay Arnold.. I'll go on a double date with you. If I can add one more condition."

Oh geez.

"What is it?"

"I want you to be my prom date." CRAP..I didn't even _want_ to go to prom! "So what do you say?" she extended her hand. "Do we have a deal?"

This was all such a pain, especially for a date I didn't even want to go on. "Deal." I shook.

* * *

_**(**Valentines Day**)**_

**Helgas POV:**

"I can't believe you talked me into this!" I growled as we entered the carnival. "Double dates are for pansies who don't know how to have a normal date." not to mention I didn't want to have a double date with _Arnold!_ He's the last person I wanted to see. Things were still too awkward between us. Hopefully princess will have him too distracted to enjoy himself.

"It'll be fun Helga! And I'm trying to make friends with Arnold, isn't that what you wanted?" _maybe BEFORE I sucked face with him._

"Its nice that you're trying to befriend Arnold or whatever.. But I think doing couple activities in a group setting is going to be awkward."

"You worry too much." he hugged me closer. "We're going to have a great time… and I know I didn't say this earlier, but you look nice."

I was wearing a pink blouse and a black miniskirt with a pink belt… and my pink bow. I couldn't resist wearing it! It matched my outfit… nobody pays attention to my bow anyway. "Thank you." I snuggled myself further into his chest. "You smell nice… new cologne?"

"You likey?" he smirked.

"Quit being a weirdo!" I slapped his chest.

"Hey guys.." Arnold walked up to us awkwardly, Rhonda practically had herself attached at his hip. She was wearing some fancy designer ensemble with hearts on it. I liked to call her look: 'slutty chic'

"Hey Arnold!" Wolfgang offered his fist, and Arnold stared at it awkwardly before finally bumping his fist against his. "Hey Rhonda" he waved.

"So… what are we supposed to do exactly?" Arnold looked about as uncomfortable as I did. Rhonda looked bored already… probably from a lack of lip to lip contact. And Wolfgang looked clueless.

"Why don't was ride something?" I offered. "It is a carnival after all."

"THE TUNNEL OF LOVE!" Rhonda grabbed Arnolds wrist and began dragging him towards the ride.

"Sounds like fun." Wolfgang led me in the same direction.

Ugh.

Arnold and Rhonda took the first boat, and me and Wolfgang took the one right behind them. "_I don't want to watch them make out!_" I hissed.

"We don't have to watch them." he slung his arm over my shoulder. "We're supposed to do our own making out." he pulled my face to his. I couldn't help but open my eyes every few moments to check on Arnold and Rhonda. Their boat was rocking back and forth and I kept seeing their limbs flailing around. She was probably raping the poor boy…

"That's enough of that." I pulled his mouth away from mine and set my head on his shoulder.

"Are you okay?" he rubbed my arm. "You seem tense."

"I'm fine." I lied.

After the ride from hell, Wolfgang decided we should play some carnival games so he could win me a stuffed animal I would never use. Since he wouldn't take no for an answer, I decided to go along with it. "I want the tiger!" I pointed to the largest stuffed animal the guy had. It had to have been impossible to get.

"Whatever you want." he kissed the tip of my nose. As soon as he turned away, I rubbed my nose angrily.

"_You okay_?" Arnold leaned over and whispered.

"_I can't take it anymore._" I muttered.

He looked at me like I had four heads. "_What?_"

"Nothing!" I said loud enough for everyone to hear. "I'm just waiting for my stuffed animal!"

"Are you going to win me one Arnold?" Rhonda grabbed his arm. "I think that tiger is _adorable!_"

"I probably couldn't win it." he chuckled.

Wolfgang put another dollar on the counter and threw another ball at the stack of milk bottles. "Of course he couldn't Rhonda! Look at his arms!" he chucked another ball and missed. "Damn it!"

"I could knock over those bottles if I wanted to!" Arnolds voice deepened. "It doesn't take muscles to knock them down."

"Oh yeah football face?" Wolfgang tossed a dollar on the counter. "Prove it. First try is on me."

Arnold rolled up his sleeves and picked up the baseball, lightly shoving Wolfgang out of the way. "Fine."

"This is going to get ugly." Rhonda rolled her eyes. "it's a classic pissing contest."

"What?" I grimaced.

"Not like _that!_" she laughed. "They're obviously competing.. Its like.. Showing who's the boss… The bigger man? You know?"

We looked back at the two hormonal teenage boys who were both throwing dollars down in exchange for baseballs. The insults between the two continued to fly..

_Boys are stupid_.

"Are they _really _doing this right now?" I groaned. "BOYS!" I grabbed each of their arms. "You're both going to be in debt by the time you realize you can't knock those damn bottles down! Can't you see it's a scam?" I took the ball from Arnolds hand. "You two are retarded." I tossed the baseball at the bottles… and they came crashing down.

"We have a winner!" the person running the game looked just as surprised as the boys did."Pick a prize macho man!" I playfully slapped Arnolds cheeks.

"That proves nothing!" Wolfgang grabbed Arnolds arm and pointed to the bell game. "I bet you can't hit that thing hard enough to make the bell ring!" with their dates forgotten, the two boys took off to the other game.

"Crimeny, boys are REALLY stupid.."

"Arnold is so… _manly!_" Rhonda sighed. "Its incredibly sexy."

"Are you dense?" I playfully knocked on her forehead. "They're acting like primates."

We walked over to join them at the other game, neither Arnold or Wolfgang had noticed our presence. They were fighting over who got to swing the mallet first. "Oldest first football face!"

"_Smartest_ person first!" he growled.

"**HEY**!" the whole carnival practically froze when I screamed.

"What?" they hissed.

"If the testosterone induced tantrum has been _thrown_.. Me and Rhonda are going to get something to eat. When you decide who's the bigger man, we'll be waiting for you at the corndog booth…. Freakin idiots! Crimeny!" I grabbed Rhonda and forced her to come with me.

"Are you okay?" Rhonda studied me across the table.

My corndog remained untouched in front of me. I was fuming.. "Why do boys have to act like that?" I pushed the corndog further away from me.

"Like us _girls_ NEVER compete." she smirked. "It's just human nature.. Its what we do. And boys well… they just get more into it than us. Its like their manhood is at stake. Especially when girls are involved."

"So they were competing to impress us?" I shook my head solemnly. "They did the exact opposite."

"For you maybe" she took another sip of her soda, which was now empty. "Damn.. I need a refill. How about you?"

"I'm good.."

"Be right back." she went back over to the corndog booth.

I hadn't really stopped to notice how many people were actually at the carnival. Everyone was paired off.. People probably thought Rhonda and I were an 'alternative couple'.. ew. But then again, people probably thought Arnold and Wolfgang were gay! Ha… that's awesome.

"Hey.." Arnold approached me looking slightly apprehensive. "Can I sit down?"

"That depends… are you done being a macho man?"

"I'm sorry about that." he blushed. "Here.." he produced a stuffed tiger from behind his back. "It's yours technically.."

"Thanks" I gave the animal a squeeze. "Wait… where's Wolfgang? Did you kill him football head?"

"No." he grinned. "Tempting, but no.. he went to the bathroom."

A panhandler approached our table with a basket of roses in his hand. "Would the gentleman like to buy his girlfriend a rose? A pretty rose for a pretty lady!"

"Hold it bucko! I-"

"Sure." Arnold interrupted. "A pink one please.." he handed the guy a few dollars. Both of us stared at the rose before he finally handed it to me. "It's pink like your bow." he chuckled.

"I'm not your girlfriend." I corrected him, trying to conceal my blush..

"The guy was just trying to earn some money… I didn't say you were my girlfriend. But if you want me to take it back" he reached over and attempted to grab the rose.

"I didn't say that!" I pulled it back just before his hand could grab it. He had leaned in close enough for me to feel his breath hitting my face. "You're treading in dangerous waters." I warned.

"Being around you is dangerous." he laughed warmly.

"We can't have a repeat Arnold." I pushed him away. "I'd have to kill you."

His face suddenly turned sour. "I didn't say I wanted to kiss you again?"

"What did you just say?" Wolfgangs voice caused my heart to stop beating.

"Huh?" I stared at him dumbly. His face was turning a bright shade of red, and his fists were clenched tight.

"You _kissed_ him Helga? YOU KISSED HIM?"

"W-wait! Wolfgang, listen!" I began "it's all a big-"

"Don't say _anything_!" he yelled. "How could you?" he focused his attention on Arnold "And YOU!" he grabbed his collar and pulled him off his feet. "YOU KISSED MY GIRLFRIEND?"

"Stop it Wolfgang! It's my fa-"

"Y… yeah!… I kissed her." Arnold sent me a 'shut up' look.. "I kissed her Wolfgang... She pushed me off of her, slapped me and told me it was wrong. But it only happened one time…. I'm sorry."

What was he doing? Wolfgang was going to massacre him! Oh my God..

"So you didn't kiss him Helga?" he still held Arnold up in the air.

Arnold looked over at me pleadingly… He wanted me to lie. He was going to risk his own safety for me. I couldn't look at either of them anymore.. "I didn't kiss him." I held back a sob.

"You're gonna die." he threw Arnold to the ground.

"NO!" I darted up to grab Wolfgangs arm.

He pulled away from me harshly and began kicking Arnold in the ribs. He curled up, writhing in pain and letting out an earsplitting cry.

"STOP IT! STOP!" tears fell freely from my eyes.

He picked Arnold up off the ground with one hand and began punching with his other. Arnold remained lifeless as Wolfgangs fist came into contact with his stomach and face. A few drops of blood began falling from his mouth, and he had developed a large gash on his forehead.

"OH MY GOD!" Rhonda dropped her soda on the ground. "What's going on? HELGA!" she shook me roughly. "What happened? SOMEONE DO SOMETHING!" she shrieked.

Wolfgang wound his fist up and gave one final blow smack dab in the middle of his face before dropping his body to the ground. "That will teach you to kiss someone else's girlfriend." he spat on his lifeless body. Everyone who witnessed the beat down stood there in complete silence, the only sound that could be heard was my sobbing.

"I'm calling 911!" Rhonda whipped out her cell phone and dialed.

"Come on Helga." he grabbed my arm and began dragging me away.

"Are you KIDDING ME?" I kicked his shin until he let me go. "I never want to see you again! You're nothing but a violent bully! GET LOST!" I slapped his face with all the strength I could muster.

"Helga!" he cupped his cheek. "You're breaking up with me?"

"GO AWAY" I pushed him away before kneeling down in front of Arnold. "Oh Arnold!" I began sobbing again. "Why?" I held tightly to his hand. "Rhonda why aren't you down here?"

"I'm not so good with blood." her face was pale and she began gagging when she looked at him.

Arnolds left eye was completely swollen shut, and his bottom lip was busted open. The cut on his forehead continued to bleed into his hairline. "_Ouch_" he whispered.

"Don't speak." I pressed his hand into my cheek. "Just wait for the ambulance."

He coughed and winced "…'_Je t'aime' means I love you." _he coughed again. ".._I looked it up."_

He actually looked up what I had said to him that night? Oh my…

"The ambulance is here!" Rhonda pushed everyone out of the way.

The EMTs forced me to let go of his hand while they loaded him into the ambulance. I begged for them to allow me to go with them to the hospital, but since I wasn't his spouse or family member, I had to watch the lights fade in the distance as they took Arnold away.

"What happened Helga?" Rhonda still looked completely terrified.

"Wolfgang found out something…" I really didn't want to tell her that her crush had kissed me.

"I heard what he said Helga.. Arnold kissed you?" I could see a flash of hurt in her eyes.

"It wasn't one sided Princess.." I covered my eyes. "Arnold didn't want Wolfgang to know."

"Wow… I can't believe it." her mouth hung agape.

"I have to get to the hospital." I sighed. "Please don't spread this information around.. Okay?"

"Do you want a ride?" she offered.

"Please."

* * *

I had been waiting in the waiting room for over five hours. Arnolds grandparents had been waiting with me and questioning me about what happened at the carnival. I told them everything except the part where Arnold and I kissed. When he was finally allowed visitors, his grandparents went in first and stayed in there for about twenty minutes.

"Shortman wants to see you." his grandpa came back out into the waiting room.

They said their goodbyes to him and left me and him alone. His head had a bandage wrapped around it, and his nose had been wrapped up... His arm was also put in a sling.

"_Hey_." he whispered softly.

"Arnold!" I fell next to his bed and began sobbing. "Why did you do that? WHY?"

"_Helga, get up.._" I pulled myself up on to the side of the bed, wiping the tears from my eyes. "_I'm not dead or anything. I'm going home in the morning."_

"You took the fall.. and you didn't do anything wrong!" I touched his face gingerly. "Why?"

"_Because… he loves you._" he used his good arm to take my hand away from his face.

"But I don't love him." I said bitterly. "He knows how much you mean to me, and he still beat you up."

"_I would have done the same thing if it had been my girlfriend._"

"You're too kind for that football head."

"_Then I guess you don't know what I'm capable of"_ he coughed and winced. "_I took that beating because it was the right thing to do."_

"What are you talking about?" I gasped. "You didn't deserve it!"

"_You're one of my best friends Helga._" he took my hand off of his lap and returned it to my own. "_I know a part of you will always care for me.. Its our bond._" tears began welling up in my eyes once again. "_But a romantic relationship between us isn't a possibility.._"

"What are you saying?" I couldn't hold the tears back anymore.

"_Wolfgang loves you Helga… and if you have any type of feelings AT ALL for him…. You'll let this go. You'll let __**me**__ go."_

"What if I can't?" I cried harder.

"_You can._" he smiled softly. "_They always say: 'if you love someone, let them go.'…you'll be okay Helga. I know it"_

"Don't make me do this.." I pleaded.

"_You loved the idea of me… your poetry always said that I was your connection to a fantasy. I represented the love you couldn't obtain as a child. But now you have an opportunity for real love Helga… you can't throw this away."_

"I can't" I continued to sob uncontrollably into my palms.

"_You need to go to him Helga.. You can't break up with him._"

"How could you ask me to do that? I can never forgive him!"

"_At least talk to him._" his eyelids became heavier and heavier. "_Wolfgang isn't a bad guy… he's in love. You of all people should know that love makes you do crazy things._"

His eyes fully closed, and he began breathing rhythmically. "I guess this is goodbye.." I leaned over and kissed his cheek.

"_It's never goodbye with you and me._" his eyes remained closed, but a small smile appeared on his lips. "_I'll see you around Helga_"

* * *

**Okay, so this is by far the LONGEST chapter. I don't like splitting POVs, but I figured it would work best for the situation. I've never had the tar beaten out of me, so I would have NO clue how to describe it from Arnolds perspective. Lol.**

**Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Hopefully the next chapter will be around soon.**


	9. You bend, I break

**Howdy! Lol. I'm here to bring you another installment of 'Supernova', and based on the reviews and messages I received the consensus is: Arnold is a dummy. XD and I totally agree with you! But the question is: will Helga listen to Arnold? And for Gods sake, will he ever wise up and realize he made a HUGE mistake?**

**Disclaimer: blah blah, Hey Arnold isn't mine. Lol. SHOCKER!**

* * *

_**(**One Week Later**)**_

**Helgas POV:**

Wolfgang and Arnold hadn't come to school all week. The news had already spread about the fight at the carnival, and the break up between me and Wolfgang. Apparently everyone thought Arnold and I had been sleeping together and having some grand affair behind Wolfgangs back. Nobody had the guts to ask me if it was the truth, so they continued to assume. On top of that, everyone was looking at me differently. It was like I had a scarlet 'A' hung around my neck. By then end of the week the only people still speaking to me were Rhonda, Phoebe and Gerald. I had asked Gerald all week long how Arnold had been doing and he kept assuring me that he was fine, and he would be back next week. As for Wolfgang, I hadn't called him or attempted to contact him in any way. Arnold wanted me to give him another chance, but I honestly didn't know if I could do that. The mental image of Wolfgang kicking Arnold while he lay lifeless on the ground had given me terrifying nightmares every time I closed my eyes. How could I forgive someone for being that brutal?

"So are you taking Wolfgang his homework?" Phoebe looked at me expectantly from the other side of the lunch table.

"I don't know Phoebs… I don't know if I even can look at him right now."

"So things between you two are officially over?"

"Arnold would blame himself if I broke up with Wolfgang permanently. He basically ordered me to give him another chance! _Who does that?_" I spat.

"Someone who _obviously_ cares about you." Gerald threw in his two cents. "My man Arnold isn't oblivious. He knows you care about Wolfgang and shouldn't throw it all away over one fight."

"Well, it looks like Arnold has divulged all his information to _you._" I scowled. It actually made me kind of mad that Arnold had told him about our….. situation. "What did he tell you exactly?"

"That you two had a little lip wrestling match." he smirked.

"Gerald!" Phoebe covered her eyes. "Must you say it like _that_?"

"It's fine Phoebe.. In all technicality, he's right." even though he described it in his typical 'Gerald' fashion. "So did he say anything else?"

"You mean did he say anything about _you?_" his eyebrow raised. "Sorry Helga, that'd be breaking the bro-code. My lips are sealed." he imitated a zipper across his lips.

I was so tired of dealing with boys and their stupid rules. Girls can be a tad psycho on occasion with our rituals and such, but guys were just plain stupid.

"Whatever" I muttered. "I'm taking Wolfgang his homework. Everyone can throw a party while I'm gone!" I grabbed my lunch tray and tossed it in the trash.

I stopped by each of his classes and got his assignments written down for him. Most of the teachers had no clue what was going on (thankfully) and they all assumed he was sick.

"You must be Helga." his English teacher smiled at me warmly. "He writes about you frequently in his daily journal."

"Really?" I wasn't really sure what to make of that.

"Tell him he did well on his oral report last week. I have his paper to return to him as well." she dug around in a stack of papers. "Here it is!" she handed me a paper titled '10 Years'.. hmm.. Why hadn't I read that one? That must have been the one Arnold read over.

I thanked her and put his assignments in my bag, and took off to Wolfgangs house. Since all of my vehicular resources were cut off, I was forced to take the bus. It was mid day, and the people on the bus were mostly middle aged, a lot of them probably thought I was skipping school. I _WISH_ I was skipping school to do something fun. The bus dropped me off in front of Wolfgangs place and as I stood on the stoop, a sick feeling began washing over me again. I started seeing Arnold curled up on the ground and crying out in pain. I tried pushing the thoughts from my mind as I rung the doorbell. "_I'm doing this for Arnold"_ I reminded myself. His mom greeted me with a shocked expression, most likely because it was a school day and I wasn't in class. She allowed me in without a second thought and offered to make me lunch. I let her down as kindly as possible and informed her why I had come over.

I knocked softly against Wolfgangs door and waited for a response. From inside I could hear "_She's Out Of My Life_" playing sullenly from his speakers. Was he _kidding_? Crimeny.

"Wolfgang?" I knocked again.

"GO AWAY MOM!" he growled.

I turned the doorknob and opened the door slightly. "It's Helga.." I pushed it open the rest of the way. "Your mom said I could just-"

"Helga?" Wolfgang popped his head out from underneath his covers. His hair was disheveled, and he had dark bags underneath his eyes. "HELGA!" he threw the covers off revealing his pajamas. He ran over to me and hesitated when I became within his reach. "I thought you'd never speak to me again" it was probably the softest tone he had ever taken with me since I've known him.

I put on my best poker face and took a deep breath. "This is strictly a business call. I have your assignments"

"Can't we talk?" he reached for my hand.

"That depends on which Wolfgang I'm speaking to." I took a step away. "My boyfriend Wolfgang? Or the bully who beats the crap out of innocent people?"

"_Innocent_?" he hissed.

"I should have known you were the same bully you used to be.." I shook my head. "Instead of being mature, you kicked the hell out of Arnold… when Arnold was just-"

"Just what?" his eyes showed a hint of anger.

"Protecting me." I threw the bait out.. All Wolfgang had to do was bite. If Wolfgang knew the truth, this whole thing would be over.. And I could get on with my life.

"Protecting you?.. You mean he didn't kiss you?" his mind suddenly began comprehending my words. "Wait…_You_… kissed _him_?" he shakily sat down at the edge of his bed. "You kissed him" he repeated. "didn't you?"

"I kissed him _first_." I clarified.

"Why?" his eyes were glistening slightly.

I dreaded that question… It was such a simple question.. But it was one that I didn't have a straight answer for.

"Have you ever done something… just because? Even if you knew it was wrong, or that people wouldn't like it?"

"Yeah.. Last Halloween.." he smiled at the memory. "When I saw you that night in your angel costume… I couldn't stop thinking about you. I wanted any excuse to talk to you. When you and Arnold went into my room I was devastated.. But after he left you alone, I went in anyway. I had to talk to you.."

"You were keeping an eye on me?" I was flattered, and slightly weirded out at the same time. "And you pursued me… thinking I had a boyfriend already?"

"But you didn't" his hand gently grabbed mine. "You brought something out of me that night that I had never felt. You made me feel different… it was all so new to me. I couldn't let you get away."

At this point, my face was completely stoic. Wolfgang hadn't flipped his lid yet about me kissing Arnold… but why?

"Wolfgang.. For some insane reason, Arnold insisted that I give you another chance."

"And are you going to?" he stared at me hopefully.

"I haven't decided."

"What do I have to do?" he got down on his knees. "I'd do anything!"

"Get up you buffoon!" I pulled on his arm until he stood up. "It's not a matter of 'making it up' to me… this is something much deeper. I _kissed_ another guy!" I took a moment to evaluate his reaction. "You beat up Arnold for kissing me.. But when I told you I'm the one who kissed him.. You're unresponsive."

"It hurts more than you know" he pressed his hand into my cheek. "It's like I wasn't good enough for you.."

"But that's not it at all!" I pulled his hand away. "I kissed him because there's something wrong with _me_!"

"_Do you still love him_?" he whispered.

"It's not that simple." I took a few steps away. "Arnold was my first love.. Unrequited, but love none the less."

We both stood there awkwardly for a few moments. I had run out of explanations, and I was in no position to explain the complicated relationship that Arnold and I have.

"Did you ever really love me? Or was it a lie?" he honestly looked like he was about to cry…

"Yes!" I wrapped my arms around him. "But it wasn't the kind of love you were wanting… you're one of my best friends. I care about you a lot."

"Do you think you could ever love me the way you love him?" he mumbled into the top of my head.

"I want to… _so bad_" I gripped him a little tighter. "You've been good to me… but I've been taking your feelings for granted." I pulled my head up until our faces were parallel. "I'm sorry."

"and I'm really sorry I hurt Arnold.." he pressed his forehead to mine. "So... does this mean we're back together?"

"I think we should sleep on it.." his eyes lit up instantly. "Not like _that._" I playfully slapped his chest. "We should take things slowly."

"Do you want to stay for a bit? We can watch a movie or something.."

"No dice, cowboy. I still have school.. You know? The thing we're ditching right now?" I flicked his forehead for good measure. "See you on Monday." I waved over my shoulder.

"Can I at least call you sometime?"

"Sure Wolfgang.."

I left Wolfgangs house with a sense of emptiness… I had every intention of never forgiving him. I still wasn't really sure if I had, and there was still the issue of his less than upset reaction to the truth about the kiss. Was he really willing to sweep it under the rug? It just didn't seem right..

About halfway from school, I realized that I hadn't left Wolfgang his homework assignments. Now I had to go back. Ugh.. I dug through my bag and plucked out his assorted paperwork. "_10 years" _I read the title aloud. He had ended up getting a 79 percent.. Not bad compared to his previous essays. Out of curiosity I skimmed over its contents. It was pretty much like I expected, he wanted to move to California and play football. It was basically everything we had discussed before. I saw my name mentioned towards the end and felt slightly flattered. He pictured his future with me! _'Every football player deserves his trophy..'_ I read the final sentence with a look of complete disdain. He really considered me his _trophy_? He didn't _treat_ me like one! What was I supposed to make of that statement? Did he really think I was going to throw my dreams away so he could play football?

Wolfgang and I had just semi-patched things up between us.. How was I supposed to bring _this_ up to him? My future wasn't something I was willing to sacrifice.. Not even for love.

* * *

_**(** Two Months Later**)-April**_

I'm a big damn chicken. Commence the clucking sounds! I admit it, I'm a big huge monumental chicken. The day I went to go back to Wolfgangs, I couldn't confront him. Something in the back of my mind kept telling me '_let it go… for Arnold_'…. so I did. Sort of. I made no mention of it to him, but his words kept repeating in the back of my mind. My inability to talk to Wolfgang was becoming very apparent.. Every time I would open my mouth, small talk was the only thing my brain could produce. Instead of facing confrontation, I would talk about weather or school.

I'm pathetic.. _very_ pathetic. Three weeks ago I received a note to go to the gym. I was apprehensive as to _why_ I had to go to the gym.. But I went anyway. The lights were off, but as I entered they turned on one by one revealing Wolfgang holding a bouquet of red roses, and a banner was pinned up behind him that read: '_Prom?' _and like the sucker I am, I accepted the invitation despite my protests to keep things more casual between us. We were still technically together, but it just wasn't the same for me anymore.

"This is ridiculous." I concluded. "I look like a cheap whore." I was wearing a black cocktail dress that showed off _way_ too much thigh for my taste, my hair was down and slightly wavy and I was wearing an atrociously uncomfortable pair of heels.

"You look hot!" Rhonda plastered another coat of mascara on her eyelashes. "Wolfgang is gonna FLIP."

"Oh boy." my voice dripped with sarcasm. "Just what I wanted!"

"Helga, I thought you two were better now?" she grabbed her curler and began fixing her bangs. "Everyone heard about his cute little prom proposal."

"Roses and a banner don't fix everything _princess_" I hissed. "I don't know if I can ever forgive him for busting Arnolds face up. It was animalistic and sickening."

"Didn't he apologize to Arnold?"

"How is Arnold by the way?" I inquired as innocently as possible. Ever since the beat down, things between me and Arnold were completely kaput. I would approach him in the halls, but he wouldn't really speak to me. He wanted to avoid any further problems with my 'boyfriend'.

"He's fine." she held back a scowl. Things hadn't progressed between those two since she found out about our kiss. Surprisingly, it was _her_ idea to cut off any chances at romance. She even went as far as letting him off the hook for prom, but Arnold being the gentleman that he is, he refused to break his promise. "He asked about you the other day."

Is it possible to choke on air? My breath hitched in that instant, and my lungs started spazzing out. "What? Why" I choked.

"He was asking about a newspaper or something. I don't know." she muttered and continued to doll herself up.

How the heck did he know I was going to apply for editor?

"Look Princess, I need to get over to Wolfgangs. Thanks for Slut-ifying me." I smirked. "See you at the prom I guess… if Arnold doesn't run away like a pansy."

"Your welcome! See you in a bit." she didn't even bother to take her eyes off of her reflection.

As I suspected, Wolfgang was already ready by the time I arrived at his house. He was decked out in a fancy tuxedo and a red boutonniere. His mother had greeted me at the door with her digital camera, flashes of bright light began going off like crazy. It was like paparazzi, but more embarrassing. He had bought be a matching corsage which he ceremoniously attached to my wrist. We weren't even at the prom yet, and I already wished it was over… too much frilly crap and pointless traditions. It was archaic.

"Are you excited?" Wolfgang opened the passenger door of Big Bobs Hummer and helped me in. I'm pretty sure he had a wonderful view of my ass the whole time I was climbing up.

Ugh.

"I guess.." I shrugged. "I don't really like dressing like Princess Rhonda and parading around like a Barbie doll."

"You look amazing." he noted.

"Thank you. You look very handsome." I managed to offer a smile. Once again, we were stuck with awkward small talk. We exchanged random pieces of conversation until we arrived at the hotel where prom was being held. Rumor has it, Rhonda rented out a "celebrity" suite for an after party. I had _no_ intention of going to it.. The quicker I was back in my pajamas, the better.

"Helga! You look wonderful" Phoebe came rushing over to me and Wolfgang as we approached the hotel doors.

"Thanks Phoebs." I smiled weakly. "You look great too. And you too tall hair boy!" I called out to Gerald in the distance. He glanced over at me and gave a thumbs up.

"We're waiting for Arnold and Rhonda" she said apologetically.

"That's alright Phoebs. Just don't forget to save a dance for me.. Okay? See you two inside."

Phoebe knew better than anyone that my relationship with Wolfgang was in deep trouble. If it wasn't for Arnold and Geralds "bromance" she would be more inclined to keep me company during my turmoil.

"Come on!" Wolfgang pulled me by my wrist. "The guys saved a table for all the players and their girlfriends." Oh. FREAKIN. Boy. Let the parading begin.

_The beginning of my forever.._

I didn't mind the sit down dinner. I got to eat and ignore everyone.. It was actually pretty pleasant. When dinner was _finished_ is when things got chauvinistic. The other guys on the football team began discussing their futures, and what they plan on doing after high school. Most of the girlfriends were _hoping_ to become their future trophy wives. How can ANYONE be happy with a _less _than below average existence in life? What about seeing the world and having an adventure? _making something_ of yourself? I sat there in silence and drowned out their mindless chatter, my attention was being called somewhere else. Arnold and Rhonda had been on the dance floor for the past half and hour, smiling and laughing. I would give _anything_ to be dancing and smiling with them.

Another slow song began playing… It was time to take fate into my own hands. "_Wolfgang_" I hissed over their chatter. "I want to dance."

"Sure Helga.." he waved goodbye to his pigheaded buddies and followed me to the dance floor.

Arnold had noticed my presence on the dance floor and made it a point to get as far away from me as possible. Me and Wolfgang swayed back and forth to the music awkwardly until something more upbeat began playing. He could obviously sense my tension from the way I was refusing to make eye contact and my inability to touch him without scowling.

"Are you okay?" he shouted over the music.

"We need to talk!" I shouted back. "Outside!" I didn't know what I was going to say when we got outside.. But whatever it was, I know it needed to be said.

"What's going on Helga?" he sat on the hand rail.

"Where do you see us in ten years?" I blurted out.

"Ten years?" he lifted his eyebrow. "I don't know.."

"I read your essay" the blurting continued. "Did you mean what you said?"

"What did I say exactly? I really don't remember." he scratched his head.

"You called me a trophy.. And you expressed a desire for me to be a housewife." The look on Wolfgangs face said it all… he was confused. He didn't see the negative side of his statement. His only example of married life was his parents.. His mom never worked a day in her life, and doted on her husband and son at all times. "You don't see an actual future for me?" I pressed further.

"I don't know?" he started getting panicked. "I just thought-"

"That I'd live out your dreams with you? And forget my own?"

"It was just an essay Helga." he pointed out.

"But it said everything I needed to know.." I sat down on one of the steps. "I want to see the world. I want to take the love of my life, and travel anywhere our hearts take us! I'm not going to spend my life in a mini mansion death box raising your five kids and cooking your dinner every night." my words caused him to become silent. The silence was almost deafening. "This needs to end." I paused. "You and me.."

"Okay." he replied calmly with no objection or uncertainty.

His calmness alarmed me "Okay?" I repeated.

"Your heart will take you to all the corners of the world someday... And I know you know it isn't going to be with me. I think you might have known that all along." he rose to his feet. "I love you Helga.. But I can't make you love me too. I'm not going to stop you from doing what makes you happy. If you can't be happy with me, then I won't fight it. I love you too much for that."

"I would still like to be your friend." I reached out for his hand. "We made a pretty good team. You're an amazing person."

"You know my phone number and email." he held back a chuckle. "Goodbye Helga." he kissed the back of my hand and pulled me in for a final hug. "Thank you.. For everything." he pulled away. "I'll get a ride home with one of the guys."

And with that, he was gone. It was over? After all the angst and drama.. It was over? I expected some huge wave of relief to overcome me, but it didn't come. I sat there alone on the steps feeling slightly empty, unsure of what I should really be feeling. Vivid memories of the past year played in my mind.. The Halloween party at his house when I felt fireworks between us, our first kiss… the first time he told me he loved me. I wouldn't get to do any of that again. We were over. Tears began wetting my eyes and spilling over and falling down my cheeks. I felt like a bad cliché, a girl crying on prom night because she broke up with her boyfriend.

"Helga?" a gentle hand touched my shoulder.

"What?" I quickly wiped away the tears and turned to look at the good Samaritan. Arnold was looking down at me with deep concern in his eyes.

"Are you okay?" he sat down next to me.

"Does it LOOK like I'm okay?" I wiped my eyes again. "And why are you talking to me? Aren't you supposed to be pretending I don't exist?"

"I was trying to make things easier.." he sighed.. "But seriously Helga, what's wrong?" His green eyes studied me intently.

"I broke up with Wolfgang." my heart sank again. "I'm just a little shaken. I'll be fine"

"I'm so sorry Helga… what happened?" he placed a comforting hand on my arm.

"I saw that '10 year' essay of his.. And it made me realize that he didn't want a future with _me_.. He wanted a future with a robot who looked like me." I hazarded a glance in his direction. "Did I do the right thing?" I bit my lip to prevent more tears.

"I can't say if you did or not. Only you know what's best for you." he gave my arm a light squeeze. "But I know you're a smart girl who knows what she wants in life, and if you believe that Wolfgang wasn't the right guy for you.. Then you're probably right on the ball."

"Thank you." I held his hand loosely in mine. "I know that we're estranged right now.. But you have no idea how much that means to me." a lone tear fell down my cheek. He smiled softly and extended his arm for a hug, which I quickly leaned into. There was no lingering romance in this moment between us. He was genuinely comforting me, and I was gladly accepting his kind gesture.

"Did you write your article for editor yet?" he squeezed my shoulders. "I asked Rhonda, but she didn't even know we had a school paper."

I continued to lay my head on his shoulder with his arm wrapped around me. "I'm almost done with it." I snuggled my head into his shoulder and sighed.

"What did you write about?"

"Nothing special" I shrugged. "I probably wont even make editor.. I've been distracted lately. I think my creativity is pretty much shot."

"You deserve to be editor!" He removed his arm so he could look at me. "Helga, when are you going to realize you're so much better than horoscopes?"

"You actually read them?" I smirked.

"I read them because _you_ wrote them." once again, his words left me in a fog. Why did he always have to be so nice? Hadn't he figured out that his kindness was my kryptonite?

"My article isn't 'editor worthy' football head, trust me." I avoided his previous statement completely. "So why are you out here anyway?"

"I was getting some air. There was way too many sweaty teenagers 'grinding' in there. I like it better out here… it's nice." he leaned back on his elbows and gazed at the stars. "And Wolfgang may have told me to come outside to check on you." he grinned sheepishly.

"Are you his bitch now or what?" I smirked.

"I'd rather not get my face pounded again. So I came out here to make sure you were alright." he glared at me. I'm assuming he didn't like the 'bitch' reference. Heh..

"Well.. I suppose my night can only go up from here. Do you want to go back inside?" I brushed myself off and stood in front of him, pretending not to notice his eyes studying my outfit. "Come dance with me." a small tinge of pink crept along my cheeks.

It was almost as if I had asked him to go make out in the alley. His eyes averted my gaze and he let out a long sigh. "That's not a good idea Helga. I can't keep giving you the wrong impression."

I went from embarrassed to livid in the blink of an eye. "Excuse me?" I kept my voice at a reasonable level.

"Every time we try and be friendly towards each other, something weird always happens."

"Weird as in: my lips meeting yours?" my voice went up a few decimals.

"Helga." he rested his head in his palms. "Lets not get into this… We agreed to stay away from this subject."

"No no NO football head. YOU made the decision! I never had a say in _any_ of this."

"Because its always a situation YOU put us in!" he finally stood up. "I'm avoiding the fallout."

"You're avoiding more than the fallout.. _much _more." I growled. "I'm done trying to keep this nightmare you call a friendship alive. I'm obviously never going to be good enough for you. I wasn't good enough when we were kids, and I'm not good enough now. I'm _done_." I pushed his shoulders harshly and took off towards the parking lot.

"_Helga! Wait!_" he called out from a few yards behind. It took every ounce of my willpower to continue and not turn around. If he wanted distance, he was going to get it. Forget the locket, forget our history… forget _everything_. Arnold was never going to love me, and he was never going to be the kind of friend I needed. "STOP!" he pulled on the door handle harshly. "Helga!" he warned.

I rolled down the window half an inch. "This isn't what you would call a 'dramatic exit' football head. You're supposed to run off an cry while I drive away angrily."

"Open the door." he tugged on the handle again. "Helga. _Open. The. Door."_

"No." I turned on the engine. "If I open this door, you'll say we should stay friends and that I'm the last person on earth you would want to be romantically involved with. I've heard it all before.. Now GET AWAY FROM MY CAR" I roared. "There's nothing worth saving anymore… and you know it."

I purposely turned on the alarm so he would let go of the handle, and I was finally able to pull away without running him over in the process. It was almost kind of vindicating to be the one who left Arnold in a haze. He had unintentionally hurt me so many times in the past, I was perversely enjoying this new sense of control. _I_ had left_ him_. But with my pleasure came the guilt.. I just completely ignored his need to talk to me.. I probably made myself look like the biggest ass in the universe.

"_Crimeny_." I muttered.

I freakin hate this.

* * *

**hehe... Angst. No story would be complete without teenage angst! To all of my readers/reviewers: I L.O.V.E. youuuu! haha. I appreciate your support! **

**Hopefully the next chapter will bring a smile to your faces. =)**


	10. The stars in my sky

**Here we go again! Lol.. I thought for sure this was going to be the last chapter, but it looks like you'll get another one after this!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold! Sadly… lol**

* * *

_**(**Two Months Later**)-June**_

**Arnolds POV:**

I've always been into astronomy. I could sit and stare at the stars all night long, and some nights I did just that. My lawn chair, a cooler full of snacks and the stars were all I needed. Lately it had been my escape from reality. The school year had dwindled down to its final days, and summer vacation was right around the corner. Our finals were over, and the pressure was off. Everything was supposed to be smooth sailing. Unfortunately for me, the sailing never really became smooth. I don't think I've had a break since fourth grade. Every day was a constant reminder that I had done some sort of wrong doing in my life. I think my mistake was trying to be close to Helga.. As bad as that sounds. Nearly every problem I have, comes back to her. Apparently I've also gained a reputation as a heartbreaker in the process. I don't really expect people to understand my reasons for keeping romance out of me and Helgas relationship, I just want them to mind their own business and respect my privacy. But lately, privacy isn't really in our friends vocabulary. After Helga and Wolfgang were _officially_ over, the rumors began to fly again. Rhonda had remained convinced that I was the culprit (again), and that Helga broke up with Wolfgang in a desperate attempt to prove her undying love to me. Sid sided with Rhonda in that argument, but Stinky was convinced I was madly in love with Helga and she was just confused. Each rumor varied from person to person, but none were correct in the slightest.

That leads me to tonight on my rooftop. So many weeks of incessant rumors and unbearable scrutiny had me near my breaking point. The only things keeping me sane were my best friend, my recently purchased 2003 Honda Civic… and the stars. The stars were always there and seemingly unchanging, and always there to offer a calming sense of peace in an otherwise chaotic world. It was the only time I wasn't forced to think about Helga in some way shape or form..

"Hey Arnold!" Geralds head appeared from the window. "You care if I come up?"

"No, come on." I waved. Since youth was no longer on our side, to get on the roof we had to crawl on all fours and suck in our gut in order to fit through the window. Once Gerald had wrestled his way through the small window he pulled the cooler next to me and took a seat on top of it. "Where's Phoebe?" it was almost unheard of for them to be apart.

"Phoebe and all of the girls were going bowling tonight to commemorate the end of the school year. I guess they have this big night planned or something." he shrugged.

"I guess that's cool.. Good for them"

"Arnold, you need to stop it with this 'I have no emotions' attitude."

"Who says I have no emotions?" I chuckled. He wasn't always good with subtly. I should have known he wasn't here for kicks. "Well? Commence the monologue" I gestured to him.

"Look, I don't want you to think I'm lecturing you about this… But something is _obviously_ bothering you, and you're avoiding it. You hide up here every night and watch the stars and pig out on junk food, and for Gods sake you're listening to sappy jazz music! Now I'm no expert, but this is how some people act after they get _dumped_." he arched both of his eyebrows. "If I didn't know any better, I would say this has something to do with a certain girl we both know. Someone who wrote you off after years of longing and desiring? Attention you're missing now that its gone…. Sound familiar yet?"

I stared at him with no attempt to mask my complete and utter shock. Gerald was one of the people who tended to back off when it came to me and Helga. It was a highly sensitive subject, and one I didn't discuss with anyone else. "Wow" I muttered. "Tell me more Doctor Phil! I'd love some more insight!" he and I both knew I was kidding.

"If you need to talk Arnold.. I'm here for you. You've seriously become a hermit since prom night. I've heard a good portion of the rumors about what happened, but you won't tell me the truth. I'm not going to force you to talk to me.. I know it's none of my business."

"You're right" I crossed my arms across my chest.

"Like I said, I won't force you… I'm just worried about you. You've yet to find a bright side." his fist bumped my shoulder.

"I had nothing to do with Helga and Wolfgangs break up." I took a break from staring at the stars to make eye contact with Gerald. "I found Helga outside of the Hotel, and we ended up arguing and then she left. There's the _big_ story everyone is dying to hear." I let out a long sigh.

"So Helga stopped talking to you after that? What did you argue about?" he got in a more comfortable position in preparation of my story.

"She invited me to go back inside.. She wanted to dance. I told her it was a bad idea-"

"Mistake number one." he pointed out. I instantly gave him a glare.

"_Anyway_… we argued back and forth about who's fault it was that we always find ourselves in these messes. She concluded there was nothing left to save between us, and took off."

"Arnold.." he sighed "You're my best friend, and we've always been completely honest with each other. Nobody else will have the guts to tell you this but me, so listen closely: you have some _seriously deep_ feelings for Helga G. Pataki."

"WHA-!"

"Shut your mouth and let me finish!" he laughed. "There lies your problem my man.. Your inability to see." his fingers motioned to my eyes. "Your brain has trained you to see only the negative side of falling for Helga. But on rare occasions, your heart won. You've kissed her… and now you turned it into a whole new ballgame. Before you kissed her, it was always just that… _her_ kissing _you._ Now normally I sit back and let you handle this yourself, but _someone_ needs to open your eyes since you wont. It's starting to affect you more than her.."

"One kiss doesn't cause the whole world order to come crumbling down." I scoffed. "It was _one_ kiss.. And one that I regret! I have nothing to be affected by."

"Why do you regret it?" he insisted on continuing this further.

"Because I did it without thinking! It was a mistake.."

"I think you regret it because you _were_ thinking, and _that's_ what scared you. You knew exactly what you were doing when you kissed her. All those years of repressed feelings and emotions erupted into one earth shattering kiss, and you were scared because you finally let her know you thought of her as more than a friend.."

I really needed to get Gerald to quit watching chick flicks with Phoebe. His psychotic perception of romance was disturbing. So what if I kissed Helga? I had one moment of weakness and now I'll never be able to live it down?

"Look, I didn't come over here to harsh your mellow." he sighed. "I just came over to cheer you up, and maybe talk about what's bothering you. You're obviously not ready to do that. Let's just forget about it… We can take your pimp mobile out for a spin" he smirked. "What do you say? Guys night out?"

"Thanks Gerald.." I sunk deeper into my chair. "But I'm just not in the mood.. Maybe next week we can plan something."

"Okay.." he stood up. "Let me know.. I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" he offered his fist for our handshake.

"Yep." my fist met his. He headed back over to the window and opened it. "And Gerald?" I called out.

"Yeah?" he held the window open.

"I'll talk to Helga about everything when the time comes.… I'm just not ready to face it yet. I promise I won't be like this forever." I smirked.

"Like I said… I'm here to listen when you need me. After all, I love your twisted love stories!" he crawled through the window before I could object his 'love story' theory.

What me and Helga have isn't what you would call a 'love story'. Usually both parties have to be madly in love in order to constitute an epic love story… If our friendship was like a movie, it would probably be a disaster flick.

There's been far too many casualties along the way.

* * *

_**(**Three Weeks Later**)**_

One ring..

Two rings..

Three…

Four…

"_Hello_?" a groggy voice answered on the other end.

"Gerald, I think my brain was abducted by aliens." I sat on the floor and continued to flip through the pages of a book.

"_Arnold?_" The springs of his mattress made a squeaking sound. "_Dude, its.._" he paused. "_4:30 in the MORNING! What's going on?_"

"I needed to talk to someone." I said as a matter-of-factly.

"_You're turning into a girl_" he muttered under his breath. "_What's wrong?_"

"I honestly don't know.." I sighed.

"_Where are you right now?_" he asked suspiciously.

"Laying in bed." I lied.

"_Don't lie to me._" he deadpanned.

"I'm sitting in my closet! Happy?" I picked up one of the small football headed statues and studied it. "I'm just… feeling some residual guilt."

"_You had another funky dream where you're about to confess something to her, huh?"_

Why did I _ever_ admit that dream to him?

"That dream creeps me out! It's like.. The words are coming out of my mouth, but its not really _me _saying them." I put everything back in the box and stuffed it back on to its shelf. "I think I'm going crazy. Is this going to haunt me for the rest of my life?"

"_I think as long as you have that box in your closet, you're always going to think about her. Even if you don't want to._"

My problem wasn't _thinking_ about Helga. My problem was seeing her face in my dreams. I kept having the same dream over and over. We would always be in my room, and I was always about to spill my guts. I was growing tired of reliving it over and over.

"_You need to talk to her._" he broke through my thoughts. "_Because if you keep calling me in the middle of the night, I'm gonna have to kill you._"

"But I'm not-"

"_READY, I know. But my God Arnold, she's been waiting for this conversation since you two were little kids. Don't you owe her that much?_"

"How can I discuss things with her if I don't know how to answer her questions?" I tossed my hand up in frustration.

"_She only wants to know one thing my man, and it's the most important thing you have to answer. DO. YOU. HAVE. FEELINGS. FOR. HER?_"

I lowered the phone from my ear and took a deep breath. I desperately wanted to close the phone and pretend he didn't just ask me that. I was starting to run out of reasons not to answer.

"_ARNOLD!_" his voice sounded muffled in the palm of my hand. I raised the phone back up to my ear and continued to remain silent. "_You can't even tell your best friend._" his voice sounded almost offended at the idea. "_Your secrets are going to bury you someday. I hope you can live with that.."_

I cleared my throat a few times in an attempt to formulate some sort of response. Why was this _so_ hard for me? "I don't know what to say." I bit my lip and exhaled.

"_You either have romantic feelings for her or you don't. And trust me your hesitation speaks volumes.."_

"Feelings or no feelings, it's territory I don't think I'm willing to dabble in. Its too messy.."

"_Then tell HER that! You dimwit. Cut the cord already! Give her that box back, and move on like the rest of us!"_

"I CAN'T." I shouted back at him. "I can't just 'move on'! I'm always going to picture her crying herself to sleep at night because of ME.. I was the one who couldn't step up and make her feel better. I'm the reason she's had to live in constant anguish! Do you realize how much that sucks?" I busted out of my closet and threw myself on my bed, panting heavily.

Gerald waited until my breathing had calmed down. "_I take that little outburst as a sign that you DO have some sort of feelings for her."_ though I couldn't see him I knew he had a grin plastered on his face.

"She bugs me." I hissed. "She _really_ bugs me! She planted herself in my brain since we were practically infants and she refuses to get out. She's hardwired in there. I don't like that feeling."

"_You know what, you've spent the past fifteen minutes talking in circles and completely avoiding the original question._"

"I'M CRAZY ABOUT HER! OKAY?" my heart skipped a beat at the realization of my own words. Both ends of the telephone remained completely silent. "Gerald?" my voice cracked.

A female voice began laughing on the other end. "_It's about time football head.._"

"Helga?" I choked. "What? How? WHY?-"

A loud ringing caused me to jump and my eyes flew open. That was by far _the_ worst dream I've had so far. My phone continued to ring and vibrate next to my bed. I picked it up and answered.

"Hello?"

"_Hey man. You never showed up for movie night! Are you okay?_" my clock read 10:23pm. I was over four hours late.. Crap.

"Sorry Gerald." I sighed. "I fell asleep again.." my strange dreams had been getting stranger and stranger, and I was starting to become afraid to fall asleep.

"_Nightmares again?_"

"They're getting worse… I think it's time Gerald." I got out of bed and leaned against my closet doorframe.

"_Wait… you mean TIME time?_ _Wow, all I have to say is: IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME!"_ he chuckled.

"I'm returning the box, knucklehead. Look, I'm going to do it now… before I lose my nerve. Call you tomorrow? Bye!" I hung up before he could answer. If I was going to do this, I had to do it while I still had the guts to. I wasted no time and pulled the box from my closet and lugged it downstairs to put it in my car. By the time I had pulled up to her place, my stomach was in knots. "Don't lose your nerve." I warned myself. "You can do this. Its just Helga.."

The lights were still on in the living room which meant Big Bob was awake. I was going to be forced to use the fire escape again, only this time I had to lug a big box up the stairs. After several minutes of struggling I managed to get the box up the flight of stairs. "_This is it_" I whispered before knocking on the window. A light flicked on and my heart began beating faster. As if on cue, the curtain was pulled back and there stood Helga. She rubbed her eyes a few times in bewilderment before realizing I was no mirage. "Are you going to open the window?" I chuckled nervously.

With a small click the window was unlocked and lifted. "What are you doing here?" she scowled.

"Settling unfinished business." I pulled myself through the window first, then pulled the box in behind me. "I believe this belongs to you." I set the box on her desk.

She stared at the box like it was on fire. Her mouth hung open slightly and she looked like she wanted to scream. "_Arnold.._" she opened the box and looked inside cautiously. "You KEPT it?" she pushed it off the desk and the contents spilled out.

"What was that for?" I knelt down and began picking things up. "You're going to make Bob come up here!" she disappeared into her closet while I continued to pick up the books. Suddenly a small gold heart landed next to my hand. I turned it over… my picture from seventh grade was inside. "What is this?" I stopped putting the books away and stood up.

"You can add that to your collection." she tried to grab it from me but I pulled away.

"You have an old photo of me in a locket?" I pressed on the clasp but it wouldn't budge. Her fingers brushed against my hand as she pressed the clasp, causing it to open.

'_Arnold my soul, you are always in my heart. Love, Helga G. Pataki'_

"I shouldn't have kept it." she finally grabbed it from me and tossed it into the box. "Now if you don't mind, I was going to bed. Take the box and go."

"I came here to give _you_ the box.. I can't have it anymore." I kicked the box in her direction.

"Fine.. Then I'm taking it to the city dump first thing in the morning." she crossed her arms in front of her. "Now get lost."

My head was telling me 'get out you idiot!' but my feet stayed firmly planted in place. My latest dream kept replaying in my head from the moment I saw her tonight... It was making me feel dizzy.

"Are you deaf football head? I said LEAVE" she pushed my shoulder.

"Helga.." I took a step closer. "I know we really aren't speaking to each other anymore… but I wanted to apologize about prom night. I was an insensitive Neanderthal."

"Here we go again" she muttered.

"Look, I apologized! What more do you want from me?"

She paced back and forth muttering things under hear breath. When Helga was getting worked up, she always talked to herself. "I don't want _another_ useless apology!" she ranted. "It leads us down the SAME path every single time! We fight, we apologize, we fight again… Do you see the pattern?"

"Again, _what_ do you want from me?" I shrugged.

If looks could kill, I would probably be dead. Her eyes were practically burning holes into mine. "Do you _really _need to ask me that football head? You've known the answer since we were nine."

I took a moment to collect my thoughts before responding. "How can you love someone like me for nearly your whole life? Honestly Helga? I'm not even worthy of that kind of affection."

"There's just something about you." her gaze drifted to the floor. "I've tried to let you go.. Its been a never ending process. Just when I think I'm finally free.. You pop into my thoughts again."

I leaned against the window frame and tried processing her words. She was just as trapped in this as I was.. It was almost like we were both at fault in our own ways. We had clung on the memories, and forgot about the present. We were seventeen years old and acting like we were nine again.

"Are you okay football head?" she looked at me awkwardly.

"Helga… are we bad for each other? Do we bring out the worst in one another?" I grabbed her wrist and moved us to the bed. "Are we doomed to continue this twisted tango for the rest of our lives?"

"Arnold.. You're not going to like hearing this.. But our problem is _you._ You have the ability to free us from this nightmare… Just say so." Just like my conversation with Gerald in my dream.. She only had _one_ question that needed to be answered. "Ever since I kissed you on the rooftop of the FTI building, you've had the power to end this. You know how I feel Arnold… I'm just waiting for you." her hands rested in her lap, shaking ever so slightly.

"It's no secret that I've liked other girls in my lifetime." I took a deep breath. "I would be highly obsessed for a while, and then it would be over before it began. They were all just like a supernova.. Here one day, gone the next.. And as I got older I didn't really want that anymore. I wanted more than a fleeting attraction. I wanted the real deal."

I could tell that she was already confused. "Arnold, you're doing that thing where you talk in circles."

"Not this time." I smirked. "What I'm trying to say is… When I look at you and think about our past, I don't see a supernova. You were more than a fading light in the sky. You're kind of like the stars in my sky.. You're always there. You always have been." I set my hand on her shoulder. "to make a long story short; I don't want us to ruin our friendship by mucking it up with romance."

"Isn't it a little too late for that?" her hand slapped mine off her shoulder. "You just called me the STARS in your sky! How do you expect me to react to that?"

"Its just an analogy." I defended.

"Are you attracted to me in any way, shape or form?" she blushed at her own words.

I studied her for a moment before returning her blush. I've never really thought about Helgas appearance before. I was trying my hardest not to glance at her figure before answering. "You're very beautiful" I stared straight ahead at her wall.

"You can't even look me in the eye and tell me that." she scoffed. "And that's not what I meant. I _meant_ are you PHYSICALLY ATTRACTED to me? Do I… you know?" she gestured with her hands. "Turn you on?"

"Holy crackers" I covered my eyes. "You did not just ask me that!" I peeked through my fingers to find her blushing profusely. "In all honesty, I've never really fantasized about _anyone_ before" I kept my eyes covered. "But yes, I do find you attractive. Or 'hot'.. whichever you prefer." I slowly lowered my hands.

"Do you ever think about me?" she still had a tinge of red in her cheeks.

I could either lie.. Or be completely honest. Either way it wasn't going to be easy. "Sometimes." I decided on middle ground.

"Why are you so afraid of _trying_ things out between us?" she set her hand on top of mine. "If we didn't work out.. Do you honestly think I would be able to walk away from our friendship?"

"Helga.. I can't just force myself into this. I'm not even sure if all this stuff I've been feeling is real, or another 'supernova'.. and testing the waters is too risky. You mean too much to me." I set my other hand on top of hers.

"Sometimes life is about taking risks." her free hand touched my cheek. "But I can't make you take the plunge."

From the moment her hand touched my cheek I had an overwhelming need to feel her against me. I shuddered at the thought. I wasn't the kind of guy who thought about girls like that. "Helga" I sighed, leaning into her touch. "How about this; lets go on a date. Fourth of July… you and me, a _real_ date. We can test the waters without getting ourselves into a mess."

She promptly removed her hand and looked at me quizzically. "Aren't you going to ask me properly?" she raised an eyebrow.

I should have known she would demand the whole package. I really don't expect any less from Helga. I grabbed both of her hands in mine and kissed them. "Helga Pataki, will you go out with me?" I swear I heard her swoon from the moment the words left my mouth.

"Well… I'll think about it." she suppressed a cackle.

"You suck!" I pinned her down and began tickling her ribs.

"OKAY OKAY!" she laughed wickedly. "I'LL GO OUT WITH YOU!" I collapsed next to her and we both took a moment to regain our breath. "You should get home.. It's getting late." she sat up on her elbows.

"I'll call you later." I rolled over her and off the side of the bed. As I was climbing out the window I paused. "And Helga? Don't throw away the box.." I smirked.

"Go home dork" she lightly slapped my cheek and pushed me out on to the fire escape.

On my drive home, the events of the past hour kept replaying in my head. I asked _HELGA_ out on a date, and we actually got along for once. Not to mention the semi-indecent thoughts that had occurred when we were in close proximity. This was all so new to me.. It was almost kind of exciting.

I couldn't wait until the fourth of July.

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**Its 1:30 in the morning, and God knows how many grammatical/spelling errors this contains. Lol.. But I hope this made you all smile! The next chapter will hopefully be around soon!**


	11. Sparks fly

**Honestly? I want to thank EVERYONE who has read and reviewed this story. I'm thrilled that there's other HA! Fans out there still. I love doing this and rehashing on the good days when HA! Was still on TV. I truly do love this! And thank you for being a part of it. =)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold… poo. =(**

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**Helgas POV:**

There are no words to describe the immense feeling of sheer joy and radiance my heart experienced when the words 'will you go out with me?' escaped Arnolds lips. My cynical disbelieving nature had dissipated in those few seconds. The world was right! The stars aligned for the first time and the clouds had separated and the sun had reached my dark and forlorn heart. A barrier had _finally_ been broken between me and Arnold after all of these years of longing and waiting. It felt like my life was finally beginning. I was counting every millisecond until I would see him again and _finally_ say that we went on an official date. After all of these years, I wanted my date with Arnold to finally open his eyes and see the love and adoration that has inundated my soul since I first heard his angelic voice. I wanted him to see the _real _me, perhaps for the first time since we met. This was my chance to bring us beyond the realm of friendship. This _had_ to go right!

The 24 hour mark was upon us. At exactly seven pm tomorrow, Arnold and I would be embarking on our fourth of July date. The anticipation was killing me, I literally felt like my heart was about to burst out of my chest. The only people who knew about our date besides us was our best friends, both of whom agreed that it was '_about damn time!_'. Phoebe was delighted and she demanded a full report once I got home. Gerald gave us directions to the town lookout point, but our peers know it as 'Mount Ecstasy'. I don't know who was more embarrassed, me or Arnold. If things progressed between me and Arnold we would have to deal with more flak from our fellow peers. But until this date happens, nobody has anything to make fun of.

The street lamps around town had been decorated with red white and blue ribbons and some people had already began their festivities early... Mainly the patrons at the local bar. There was also the faintest scent of barbeque lingering in the humid air. I've never really been keen on summer, I prefer fall weather. Sweating half my body weight while walking from one location to the next was never appealing to me. I like bundling up in a jacket and walking aimlessly, listening to the dead leaves crumble underneath my feet. Weather like today was always such a turn off. The high was nearing one hundred degrees and the humidity was becoming unbearable.

"I hate summer" I held my Arnold locket above my sprawled out figure. A few stray beads of sweat fell down my temple and on to my sheets. "Oh Arnold!" I swooned "Just twenty three hours and forty five minutes, twenty one seconds until I see you at my doorstep. Be still my heart!" I held the locket tightly against my chest and let out a girlish squeal followed my a groan of irritation. My clothes had practically become matted to my sheets because of all the sweat. "I have to get out of here." my finger brushed against the picture inside the locket. "Maybe I'll go get a milkshake." I grinned wickedly.

"Hey hey hey! Where are you going with my keys little lady?" Bob caught me before I could slip out the front door.

"_Damn it_" I muttered under my breath. "Well _Bob_, I was just… going to read to the blind." I rested my shoulder against the door frame and twirled the keys on my index finger. "I'm getting my last bit of community service hours in before graduation."

"Graduation?" he scoffed. "You're only 14!"

"Dad, I'm 17." I growled.

_GOD, He's an idiot._

"Whatever Olga" He leaned back further into his recliner. "Bring dinner when you come back. Miriam is sleeping behind the couch again. Be back in an hour. Capiche?"

"_Fine_" I hissed and swiftly exited before he could change his mind. After seventeen years I had come to expect Bob to call me anything but my actual name, and always forgetting my age. Instead of getting pissed off, I found reasons to laugh about it. Bob and Miriam are two of the biggest numbskulls that ever walked the planet. A mentally retarded goldfish has a bigger brain than both of them combined. "At least I get to drive his ridiculously large military style vehicle." I smirked.

Slausens at this hour is usually full of several of our classmates. I wasn't surprised to see Stinky and Sid and the rest of 'the boys' at their usual booth. I waved towards the group and gave them a small nod before taking up residence at the counter. If my calculations were correct, Arnold should be working this shift. One of his coworkers tended to Stinky and Sids table and I began worrying that I had figured wrong.

"Well, well.." an all too familiar voice shocked me and caused me to turn back towards the counter. Arnold was leaning on his elbows and watching me through half lidded eyes. "This is a surprise." he slid a napkin in front of me. "Extra large triple chocolate milkshake.. Two cherries?" he held his pencil against his pad of paper, waiting for my confirmation.

"How the heck did you remember that?" I looked at him incredulously.

"Not a lot of girls come in here and order a triple chocolate milkshake." he scribbled down the order and sent it back into the kitchen. "So were you really hungry for a shake? Or were you coming by to see me?" he leaned against the counter and smirked a little suggestively.

"Why Arnold!" I mock gasped. "Are you openly flirting with _me_?" I held my hand to my heart for good measure.

"No, not flirting." he removed himself from the counter looking a little uneasy at _my_ attempt to flirt. "Just observing."

Why was he so afraid of showing any signs of affection? When it came to our date he kept everything under wraps, and he rarely spoke of it. I was almost worried that he never _wanted_ anyone to know about us.. I mean our date. He interrupted my thoughts by setting a large milkshake on my napkin. A small mountain of whipped cream sat on top with two cherries sticking out. "Thanks" I pulled it closer to me and sucked on the straw. He stood there a moment longer before giving up and continued taking other peoples orders. The guys bid me and Arnold their farewell before taking off to the arcade down the street. Arnold grabbed a dish bucket and began cleaning out their booth while simultaneously trying to avoid interacting with me in any way. Any worries I had about our date before seemed trivial at the moment. Did he still want to go out with me anymore? Usually you _speak_ to the person you're about to court. I don't get what I did to him to scare him off.

"Are you finished?" I felt Arnolds breath tickle the back of my neck. I nodded weakly, still keeping my eyes forward. He reached his arm around me and grabbed the glass, his midsection pressed into my back softly. He tossed the cup into the tub and continued on his way back to behind the counter.

"How much do I owe you?" I held up my wallet.

"It's on me." he smiled softly.

"How much do I owe you?" I said a little harsher.

"Helga.." he sighed. "Don't be like that."

"Be like _what_?" I tossed a five dollar bill and some ones on the counter. "See you around football head." quite frankly, I was feeling slightly nauseous and extremely let down after that encounter. So much for progress.

"Helga wait!" he practically threw himself on the counter in order to grab my wrist. "Don't leave angry." he pulled me back to the bar stool. "I'm sorry… about earlier. I'm just not used to _that_ kind of banter between us."

"So I assume the date is off?" I kicked my feet harshly against the bottom of the counter.

"No!" he held his hand up. "we're going out so we can test the waters, remember? To see if there's a… spark." just looking into his eyes at that moment made me feel _more_ than a spark.. It was an inferno in my soul. It drove me wild.

"Sparks.." I swallowed thickly. "…..Sounds hot." One more attempt at flirting couldn't hurt.. Right?

"It could be... _hot_" his mouth formed into a lopsided grin. "This is still weird" he chuckled.

"Do you think it's easy for me either?" I smirked, glancing at my watch. "Ugh.. Look, I need to go. Big Bob is food deprived, and it could get ugly if he doesn't eat soon." I stood up. "Thanks for the milkshake football head, it's been a slice."

"Don't forget your money!" he pointed to the bills on the counter. I returned the counter and grabbed the ones, leaving the five. His hand landed on top of mine, halting me. "And Helga?" he leaned in closer. "For the record?… I _was_ flirting with you earlier." he released my hand. "Pick you up at seven tomorrow?"

My body remained paralyzed for a moment. If I didn't know any better, I could swear that my heart was visibly pounding through my chest. My love _was_ flirting with me in a public setting. It wasn't a fantasy! A small sigh of contentment escaped my lips before I could stop it. He raised an eyebrow at me curiously. "Tomorrow" I pushed the door open.

"Bye" he winked, sending me further into my crippling state of euphoria.

* * *

_**(**The Next Day**)**_

"I'M DYING! I'M DYING! HOLY CRAP I'M DYING!" I rocked back and forth on the floor of my closet. "I…. AM…. DYING!"

"Helga! Calm down" Phoebe pressed a paper bag up to my mouth. "Breathe!" I grabbed the bag and began breathing rapidly. My best friend since childhood took a seat next to me in the closet and offered a friendly pat on the back. "You gotta calm down Helga." she continued to pat my back.

"I've practically waited my whole life for this" I tossed the bag in front of us. "I'm freaking out Phoebs… this is _really_ happening!"

Arnold had called around five o'clock and made sure we were still on for today. Until that point, I had been somewhat stoic but after hearing his voice I lost my Zen. I began pacing around my room and freaking out. I phoned Phoebe and begged her to come over and keep me from going insane, which leads us to our current situation. My hair and clothes were disheveled and my body was unable to stop shaking. I seriously felt like I was having a nervous breakdown.

"You're putting too much pressure on yourself." she squeezed my shoulder. "This date isn't supposed to give you an aneurism. You need to go with the flow… be yourself. You need to keep reminding yourself _you're_ the right girl for him"

I let out a long drawn out sigh. "Thanks Phoebs. I needed to hear that… I just hope he'll feel the same way! If this date doesn't make sparks fly between us.. Then it'll be over. I'll have wasted my one and _only_ chance!" I found my balance and managed to stand up again. "What am I supposed to do? I can't make him fall in love with me!"

"I know.." she brushed her pants off while getting to her feet. "But he wouldn't have asked you out tonight if he didn't feel _something_ for you. He's just trying to figure it out."

"I need to pull out all the stops." I began flinging clothes around the room. "Whatever it takes, right?" I grabbed a pair of shorts and continued digging through my clothes.

"That's not what I meant.." she dodged a flying t-shirt and grabbed my wrist. "Tonight is your opportunity to show him the real you. No inhibitions.. No expectations. Just you and him."

"What if he doesn't like the real me?" I cradled my arm to my chest.

"Give him a chance to decide for himself. Arnold is a good guy Helga… He's going to love the real you."

"I can only hope.." I sighed. My nerves were raw and I felt like I was going to be sick. Knowing the impact tonight was going to have on the rest of my life was making me deathly afraid. This one date meant _everything_ to me.

After another half an hour of fretting, I let Phoebe go home so I could finish getting ready. I tried toning down my outfit so it wouldn't seem like I was trying so hard, I wore plain shorts and a t-shirt. My hair remained in low riding pigtails and my old pink bow was tied on top of my head. I sat on the edge of my bed and watched the clock intently. Each passing second felt like a lifetime.. 6:50... 51.…52.…53... My nails were becoming practically nonexistent. The sound of a car pulling up to our curb caused me to shoot up from my bed and check the window.

"_Arnold_." I cooed. As if on cue, his gaze traveled to the window. We exchanged small waves before I took off to the stairs so Bob wouldn't answer the door. "Later Bob!" I shouted on my way out the door, crashing into Arnold in the process. "Ow" my palm rubbed the side of my head. "Sorry.."

"Where's the fire?" he mimicked my actions and rubbed his head "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine.." I finished closing the front door behind me. "I just didn't want Bob to embarrass me. He's not over my breakup with Wolfgang quite yet." I snickered. At the mention of Wolfgang he looked a little uneasy. "He's the only one who hasn't let it go." I assured.

"Here" he held out a single red rose, it was nearly as red as he was becoming.

"Thank you.." I bit my lip to hold back a squeal of excitement. "It's beautiful."

"Your welcome." he shifted awkwardly. "So um… are you ready to go?"

_Yes my love… I'd follow you anywhere._

"Yep.." my mind continued to race when I got in his car. Arnold actually got me a _flower_… and he was just as nervous as I was! _oh…_ I think I might die. "So where to Arnold?" I kept my clammy hands in my lap, afraid I might grab him and never let him go.

"I managed to get tickets to the firework show later on tonight at the harbor." he grinned.

"Those have been sold out for weeks!"

"My grandparents offered me theirs. Grandma still thinks its Thanksgiving today, so she didn't mind missing out on the fireworks." his gaze met mine and we both instantly looked away awkwardly. "And since this is a date.. I figured we could go to dinner."

Why was this so weird for both of us? We've hung out before with no problem. The tension between the two of us was intoxicating us both into submission. The silence was almost deafening. Just as I was about to break the silence, the car came to a halt. "Slausens?" I looked at him awkwardly. "You're taking me to _Slausens?_"

"Come on." he went around the car and opened my door before grabbing my wrist. Instead of going in the front doors, he took me around to the alley entrance. We went through another service door and up a flight of stairs.

"Where are we going? The food is _downst-" _my rant was cut short when I ran into him face first for the second time that night.

"Close your eyes.." He grabbed my hands and placed them over my eyes. "No peeking."

During my blindness his hand rested along the small of my back, pushing me forward. I took extra caution with each step I took, I was completely clueless to where he was leading me. After a few clicking sounds, and door hinges squeaking he warned me to watch my step and led me down another step. I was met with a warm gush of wind against my bare arms.

"Okay.. You can open your eyes." He stood behind me and removed my hands from my eyes.

Once my eyes adjusted to being uncovered I was able to gather my bearings. Set out before us was a table on the roof. Twinkle lights and candles decorated the area around it. A soft breeze carried the scent of our dinner towards us. It was _magical_. This _couldn't_ be real.. I had to be dreaming, or dead.

"Do you… like it?" he looked like he was about to explode.

"Arnold." I let out a shaky breath. "It's perfect! You went through all this trouble for me?"

"Yeah." his cheeks began blushing again. "You want to sit down maybe?"

I nodded nervously and lead the way to the table. He pulled my chair out for me and placed our food on the table. If he kept this up, I was going to have a heart attack. "Arnold.. Why is this so weird for us?" I took a long sip from my shake.

"Aren't most first dates awkward?" he shrugged.

"Ours has an extra layer of awkward piled on top." I noted. "I think the term 'date' has us both in a tizzy."

"How do we fix that?" his chin rested on his fist.

_By making out_

"By pretending we don't have history together." I silently thanked God for mental filtering.

"Okay.." he took a moment to process. "So Helga.. I never got a chance to congratulate you. I saw the end of the year newspaper with your picture in it. Are you excited about being editor?" I have to admit, the boy was good at pretending.

"I'm excited, but I'm hoping I can make a difference for future underclassmen. As soon as possible, I'm lifting the underclassmen article ban."

"That's really righteous of you." he looked almost surprised. "I knew you wanted to be editor, but I figured it was for the power."

"Oh don't worry, they'll be running scared when I'm done with them." we both let out a small laugh.

"I think you'll do a good job." his warm hand suddenly came into contact with mine. Both of our gazes traveled to our hands. "Sorry" he pulled away like I burnt him.

It seemed no matter how hard we tried, we kept running into awkward moments like that. The more we fought our natural instincts, the weirder things were becoming. If our legs touched underneath the table we would both jump and instantly apologize and remain silent for a few minutes. By the time we finished eating I had a growing empty feeling in the pit of my stomach. Arnold wasn't enjoying spending time with me.. I could just _feel_ the awkwardness radiating out of him.

As we gathered up our things off the roof, I decided to speak up. "Arnold.. You don't have to take me to see the fireworks tonight. It's obvious that this isn't working out."

"What?" he set the plates down and stood in front of me. "What are you talking about?"

"Are you having a good time with me?" I moved a step away.

"Yes?"

"Is that a question or an answer football head?" I growled.

"I'm sorry! Look.." he grabbed my hand. "I'm going to be 100 percent honest with you right now… you see, I've only been on maybe three dates in my life. All three of those dates were with girls I didn't really know well. We spent the whole time talking about random crap, and I couldn't wait for it to be over. But with you? It's completely different." He took a moment to gather my reaction.

"Arnold-"

"You know me.. _very_ well. You know my birthday.. You know about my home life.. You know I love jazz music…You know about my parents." he looked down at his shoes. "With my other dates, I could hide behind a mask and be someone else for a while. There was no pressure. But you? You see right through me.. And you still like what you see. It scares the living heck out of me."

Arnold looked at me with concern when I didn't respond right away. My thoughts were currently on trying to keep my heart from flying out of my chest. If he had been aware of the ungodly things I would like to do to him at that very moment, he would never be able to look me in the eye again. It was taking everything in my power to not tackle him and make some fourth of July fireworks of our own.

"I've tried to dislike you." I intertwined our fingers. "I wanted to beat your face in and cackle with enjoyment.. But I never could. You are genuinely the most beautiful person.. Inside and out. You saved me from a life of loneliness and contempt, you gave me a reason to dream. Do you realize how much that means to me?" I grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer. "Tonight you wanted to see if you feel sparks." I pulled him closer to my face and his eyes got wider. "_I felt them the moment I met you_" I whispered in his ear.

He shifted his head so our eyes could meet. "_Sparks_" he whispered, pressing his forehead into mine. If I didn't know any better, I would think he was about to kiss me. I nuzzled our noses together and closed my eyes. I wasn't going to make the first move.. If we were going to kiss tonight, he was going to initiate it.

"_Your heart is pounding_" I pressed my hand further into his chest.

"_You're making me nervous._" he laughed and repositioned his head again.

"_Good nervous or bad?_" I nearly jumped out of my skin when his hand found its way to my waist.

"_Good_" his lips were close enough to almost brush against mine. Why won't the just kiss me already? After what seemed like an eternity he released me and backed away. "Sorry.." he looked away after seeing my look of sheer confusion and shock. "We should get to the harbor.. The fireworks start soon."

I made no attempt to mask my disappointment. "What the heck was that all about?" I demanded.

"Helga, it may sound like a good idea at the moment, but kissing up on the rooftop of Slausens isn't exactly what I had in mind for us tonight. If we kiss, it'll be more than a steamy make out session at the local eatery."

"What do you mean by 'more'?" I wiggled my eyebrow.

"Oh stop." he waved my comment off. "Are you coming with me or not?"

"That depends, are we going to get _steamy_?" I took off running towards the door before he could answer.

"You're dead Pataki!" I heard his footsteps coming up behind me. When his arms wrapped around my midsection I let out a loud howl. "Gotcha!" he lifted me off my feet.

"AH! You bastard!" I cackled. "Is this where your plan ends?"

"Oh no, I'm just starting." he set me back on my feet. I almost groaned at the loss of contact.

"Bring it on football head." I opened the doors that lead to the stairs. "So are we getting out of here or what?"

"Since the harbor is only a few blocks away, and the parking lot is probably crowded by now I figured we could walk there… if that's okay with you."

"Come on then!" I pulled him down the stairs.

After the initial awkwardness in the beginning of our date, things seemed to be okay between us again. As we walked to the harbor it was like old times, we goofed around and had a pleasant conversation. It was the most comfortable we've been around each other in years.

"Helga?" Arnold pressed the button at the crosswalk. "This is probably going to sound cheesy, perhaps on the borderline of loser… but uh… I was wondering.. Uh.."

"Spit it out!" I chuckled.

"Can I hold you hand?" his face began turning a pale pink.

_Commence swooning_

"Yes.." I held my hand out and waited to feel his warm hand connect with mine. I didn't think it was possible for a person to generate such electricity, but Arnold simply putting his hand in mine caused extreme electric shock throughout my whole body. It was invigorating… and I still couldn't believe it was happening to me.

After getting inside the gate to the festivities, Arnold still held tightly on to my hand despite the presence of our neighbors and friends. I just hoped Rhonda wasn't around.. Talk about awkward. We walked out on the pier in anticipation of the fireworks which would be starting in less than ten minutes. Several little kids ran around with sparklers and American flags in their hands, ducking in and out of the other spectators. Everyone was eagerly awaiting the first firework to light up the sky. We reached the end of the pier and sat down, hanging our legs over the side. I tried not to swoon over the fact that his hand was still holding mine.

"Are you having fun so far?" his shoulder touched mine when he had leaned over.

"What do you think?" I laced our fingers together and gave a soft squeeze.

For what felt like the hundredth time that night, our eyes remained locked on each others for just a little too long. I still had to force myself to keep my hormones in check… I wondered if he had to too?

"We gotta stop doing this." he bit his lip. The hormonal teenage girl in me couldn't stop staring at his teeth grating against his bottom lip. I wanted it to be _my_ teeth biting on his lip.

_STOP IT HELGA. Get a hold of yourself!_

"Stop looking at my lips!" He covered his mouth self consciously. "Creeper."

"Shut up!" I pulled his hand from his mouth. "I can look all I want to! Its not like I'm kissing you-" I was cut off mid sentence with his finger against my lips.

"You're weird." he concluded, leaning in just a little further. "I like that.." his index finger slid agonizingly slow against my bottom lip before he used his hand to cup my cheek.

_This is it!_

A loud boom caused both of us to jump, our moment forgotten. A flash of red sparks illuminated the sky in a bright flash. All of the children did a collective 'Oooh!'. Several more fireworks shot into the air and exploded in a flurry of colors that reflected from the water in the harbor. I glanced over at Arnold to catch him already staring at me. He grabbed my hand and slid closer, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. Out of instinct, I laid my head on his shoulder. The moment his arm wrapped around me, I completely forgot about the fireworks in the sky… the sparks were already flying behind my eyes.

The night had officially come to an end, it was nearing eleven and most festivities had already ended. Arnold and I were standing on my stoop… attempting to say good night.

"I had a good time tonight" I held the rose to my nose and took a whiff. "Thank you for everything."

"I had fun too." he smiled warmly.

"I hate to be the one to bring it up… but… how do you-"

"Don't spoil the night Helga." he grabbed my shoulders. "We haven't even said good night yet. Lets just enjoy these last few moments away from reality."

"You mean the reality where you and I can never happen?" I threw the worst possible scenario out.

"Stop it!" he laughed. "You don't have to be so negative. You need to remember to smile more, it looks good on you."

"I'm not imagining this, am I?" I stepped closer. "We've been flirting all night long.."

"We have." he nodded. "It's not so weird anymore.."

"Is this the last time we'll ever openly flirt?" I decided to back into the question from somewhere else.

"That depends."

"On?"

"If you agree to go out with me again." it took my mind a moment to process what he just said.

"Again?"

"Yeah.. We had a good time tonight and I'd like to explore it further… if you want to." he grinned sheepishly.

"Does this mean you felt sparks?" I pushed the limit's a little further.

"Mmhmm." he grabbed my hand. "Sparks flew from the moment you ran into me at your front door.. I couldn't stop thinking about how pretty you looked."

It was my turn to blush like a fool. "Oh wow.."

"Look, its getting late.. I'll call you tomorrow?… good night Helga." he brought the back of my hand to his lips. He had no idea how badly he was torturing me.

"I know you're a gentleman and everything Arnold, but my hand? Really?" I pulled my hand away. "I waited 14 years to go on a real date with you. Give up the goods!" I pointed to my cheek.

"You are such a weirdo." he took a step forward and I prepared myself for a kiss on the cheek. I nearly screamed when his lips connected with mine for a chaste peck that ended all too quickly. "Good night" he repeated.

"Good night" I sighed dreamily.

"_Oh screw it_." he muttered, pulling me against him and kissing me feverishly. After the initial shock, I hooked my legs around his waist and relished in that moment. He pulled his mouth away and pressed his forehead into mine. "Anyone who's willing to wait 14 years deserves a proper goodnight." he panted, kissing me minutely.

"I would have waited 14 more if I had to" I pulled his bottom lip between my teeth and both of us groaned.

"I wouldn't have to worry about that." he kissed the side of my mouth.

"GET A ROOM!" a hobo came walking by with his cart.

"I really should go home.. Grandpa and Grandma are probably wondering where I am." we slowly backed away from each other.

"Bye.." I looked away, suddenly feeling shy.

He pulled me in for one final short kiss. "Don't look so worried. This wasn't heat of the moment. _Trust _me." he smirked. "Sleep well Helga.."

"I will now." I sighed, feeling an emotion I could never quite define before now..

_Happiness_..

* * *

**So here's the deal: I've decided to continue the story through their senior year. Should I keep writing it under THIS story (Supernova)? Or start a new story as a continuation? (title undecided at the moment)**

**Let me know what you think!**

(*UPDATE*) this ISNT the end! Nobody needs to worry. I am 1 BILLION percent positive I'm continuing the story. =P I'm just deciding if I should start a NEW story and mark this one as complete. (since this one is about their Junior year)..


	12. Aftershock

****

Since several of you all agreed, I decided to keep the story under the title "Supernova", but I'm changing the description since it's no longer their Junior year. =]

**But be forewarned, the second part of this story (in my mind) isn't "Supernova" anymore. A name was suggested by Sky Raider, and I can't stop thinking about it. Part two of this story is going to be entitled: "Aftershock" (Thank you for the suggestion by the way!) **

**So yeah, part two will consist of their Senior year. I have NO clue how long it'll be! I hope you all enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold. **

* * *

_**(**Two Weeks Later**)- Late July**_

**Arnolds POV:**

I'm no Casanova. It's no secret really, I'm _terrible_ when it comes to girls. They intimidate me to the point of incapacitation. I've been pursued by the opposite sex on a few occasions, not counting one girls extreme and utter devotion to me. The few dates I've been on were in a word; disastrous. The two relationships that I've actually been in were short lived and unfulfilling, there was Anya in seventh grade and Gretchen my freshman year. Anya was the daughter of a politician, she had the art of manipulation down to a science, she also had an insatiable need to keep her lips flap flap flapping. I ended up breaking up with her after two months of incessantly torturous 'Arnie-Bear!' and 'Snookums' followed by parading me around school. Gretchen was probably the most seemingly quiet person you'd ever meet. She and I got paired together for a project in our freshman English class, at first she kept to herself and didn't say much. After working together for two weeks away from the classroom setting, she was a totally different person. We were sitting on the floor of my room finishing up the last bit of our project, before I could even blink she had her lips on mine. Her boldness drew me to her, it was unexplainable. We broke up around four months later.. Gretchen was…well.. More _advanced_ than me. A new years eve party led to some unwanted groping on my part. That night I sought refuge inside of a bedroom at Rhondas... Where I ran into Helga. She was all alone and playing solitaire on a big plush bed. After an initial awkward explanation, she kindly offered to play cards with me. Thus a tradition was born between the two of us. It was sort of an upstanding 'date' for years.

"ARNOLD!" a hand flew in front of my face. "You're daydreaming again."

"Sorry Gerald.." I sighed. "I just have a lot on my mind lately."

He nodded his head rhythmically to the song playing on the radio, drumming his fingers against the steering wheel. Gerald knew better than to force me to talk about what's up, so instead he went off into his own world.

"How did you know Phoebe was the right one for you?" I blurted out before my mind could stop me.

He turned the music down and took a moment of contemplation. "The first time we kissed… seventh grade. From that moment on, I couldn't stop thinking about her. But I'm going to go out on a limb here.. This has to do with a certain blonde headed crabby pants we both know?"

"She's not crabby." I muttered.

"mmm mmm mm. You've been sucked in by the Pataki gravitational pull my man. Someone is smitten."

I don't think smitten would be the correct word for what I'm feeling. Jaded would fit better.

"I kissed her when we went on our date.." I couldn't bring myself to look at him when I admitted it.

"Say _WHAT_? Holy crap… How many bases?" his voice was suddenly riddled with enthusiasm.

"No bases Gerald." I deadpanned, giving him a disapproving glare. "Just a little…. _Making out_."

"Tongues?"

"GERALD! Not. Going. There."

"Oh come on man! Give me something. Did you at least _like_ kissing her? You didn't gag?" We parked next to the basketball courts and he waited for my response.

"No, no gagging." I rolled my eyes and opened the passenger door. Before we reached the courts he stood at the entrance of the chain link fence, blocking me. "The guys are waiting." I pointed towards our friends.

"Just answer me this; are you two together now?"

I pressed the basketball roughly into his chest, pushing him through the entrance. "Nope."

"This conversation isn't over!" he trailed behind me.

And indeed it wasn't over. After our basketball game with the guys, Gerald wouldn't stop asking about Helga and why we weren't together yet. I didn't really know what to say in response. After my date with Helga I had only seen her in passing, and spoke to her a few times on the phone. As for starting an actual _relationship_… I didn't know if I was ready for that yet. Yes, I'm attracted to Helga. I like spending time with her… and her kisses wipe all coherent thought from my mind, but was I _mentally_ ready for a committed relationship with her? Were we both ready for the inevitable implications that come with dating? I didn't want to have another 2-4 month relationship.. Especially with someone who means something to me.

* * *

_**(**One Week Later**)**_

"That's Venus right there. Just off to the left." I took her hand and pointed it towards the sky. "See it?"

"Amazing." Helga mused, holding her index finger and thumb close together. "It's so far away from here.. It makes me feel small" she chuckled.

Helga had dropped by my place just a little after sunset with a duffle bag on her shoulder. After my initial shock, we wound up on my roof. In her duffle bag she had brought a blanket and binoculars. She wanted to stargaze with me.. At first I was apprehensive of her intentions, but I found that stargazing with Helga was actually pleasant. We laid there on the blanket side by side under the glow of the moon… I found myself staring at her more than the stars above us.

"Helga?" I broke our comfortable silence and rolled on my side so I could look at her fully.

"Yeah?" she turned her head towards me.

"I'm glad you wanted to do this tonight.. It's been fun." she followed my earlier actions and rolled over on her side, propping herself up on her elbow. "I like spending time with you like this."

"Every second spent in your presence is more than enough for me." her hand landed on top of mine. "Thank you for spending time with me."

"I like seeing this side of you." I admitted. "I just wish you hadn't hid it from me for 14 years.."

Her smile suddenly faded. "I was scared… I still am."

"Scared of what?" I turned my hand over so our fingers could intertwine.

"Scared that you wouldn't like the real me." she almost looked like she wanted to cry. "I'm afraid you'll open you eyes and see that I'm all wrong for you-"

"Stop." I squeezed her hand. "I never didn't like what I saw. I saw a girl who was forced to hide behind a mask. Someone who was afraid to let go of her pride. But most importantly… a girl who loved me through thick and thin.."

"I don't deserve you." she pulled her hand away from mine. "You're kind, considerate, brilliant-"

"_You are too_." I leaned over and placed a small kiss on her lips. "You just need to open your eyes and see it like I do." she closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again and meeting mine, just mere centimeters away. Forces beyond my control pulled me in, and in the blink of an eye we were kissing again. Kissing Helga always made me feel self conscious, she had much more experience and practice than I did. She seemed to know exactly what to do and where to put her hands. As for me? I was clueless. Gretchen was the only girl I had made out with besides Rhonda and Helga, but Gretchen had other intentions which lead to her hand plunging into my pants. I didn't want to kiss another girl again for a _long_ time.

My thoughts were shattered when Helgas teeth pulled on my bottom lip. For some reason she _really_ liked that.. And to my surprise, I had no problem with it. We had rolled around a few times on the blanket and I wound up laying on top of her, our legs tangled together. She had the most pleased expression etched on her face.

"What are we doing?" I muttered, kissing her again.

"Stargazing?" she began kissing my neck and biting the area where my neck and shoulder met.

I gathered my composure and sat up. "No, seriously Helga. What _are_ we doing?"

"Messing around?"

"I don't mess around Helga!" I moved further away from her. "Look.. We need to get things out in the open. I know you want to be with me… and… I'm…"

"_Not ready_." she rolled her eyes and stood up. "We've gone on a date, we had a good time. We've made out, which I KNOW you enjoyed." she glared at me. "So what's the problem?"

I got up off the blanket and stood in front of her. "Dating will make things complicated between us... Especially if something happens."

"You mean sex?" she grinned wickedly.

"NO!" I stuttered. "I mean- I … n-..not that its not a possibility someday, but I- UGH! Stop that!" I warned. "I'm saying if we ever broke up it would make things complicated."

She took a deep breath and sighed. "Someone once said 'love is giving someone the power to destroy you, but trusting them not to'… so Arnold.. Do you trust me?"

"Yes." I said without any hesitation. "I trust you."

Her hand gently grabbed mine and placed it on her cheek. "And I trust you." she closed the distance between us and wrapped her arms around my torso, hugging me tightly.

"Then lets do this the right way." I held her face in my hands. It felt like I was going to pass out at any moment. "I've had time to think about it for a while now… you've shown me this whole new side of you. You've opened my eyes and made me see what was there all along… and… I really want to be with you… _Officially_. Boyfriend and girlfriend, the whole nine yards. Late night phone calls, cheesy mix CD's and-" my monologue was cut short when her lips collided with mine.

"You knew my answer before you even spoke." she kissed me repeatedly for a good five minutes.

"Helga.." I mumbled between her unwavering stream of kisses. "We… need… to …stop" she paused for a moment before diving back in. And frankly.. I was enjoying every second of it. I didn't think it was possible, but her kisses were invigorating. They woke something up inside of me that had been dormant for all my life. It was overwhelming to say the least.

An hour, five hickies, and a tube of chapstick later Helga had finally ravaged me long enough to sustain her. Both of us lay breathlessly on the roof with silly grins on our faces. Helga looked like she was about to burst with sheer joy… it was kind of cute.

"Wow.." was the only word she could formulate.

"Yeah." I found myself just as wordless.

"So… you're really my boyfriend?" she crawled on top of me and kissed my chin.

"Yep… I am." she basked in that moment. If life was a movie, I'm pretty sure the hallelujah chorus would be playing joyously while she swooned. "Are you happy?" my hand brushed a few stray hairs out of her face.

"I keep waiting for this beautiful dream to end.." both of her hands gripped my waist as she sat up on my stomach. "This is too nice to be real." with the moon and stars glowing behind her, she looked almost… _angelic._

I sat up, forcing her to fall into my lap. "It's no dream." my hands rested at the small of her back.

Her forehead leaned against mine and we did a collective sigh. "Who are we going to tell first?"

"Gerald and Phoebe I suppose.. Everyone else doesn't matter. They'll figure it out on their own." our lips brushed together briefly. "They already think we're sleeping together after all." I smirked.

"Rhonda is going to freak out." she noted.

"It's none of her business. What happens between us _stays_ between us."

We sat in that position for what felt like hours, trading lazy kisses every so often. It was surreal… But comfortable. Helga was officially my girlfriend, there were no more reasons to angst and evaluate every second of every day. All that mattered was… I had undeniable feelings for her. Just holding her close to me and feeling her heart beating next to mine.. It was perfect.

She was mine to hold… and it felt amazing.

* * *

_**(**One Month Later**)- August**_

"Why are you so worried about this?" I tightened my grip on Helgas hand. "We've grown up with these people."

"Do you know how hard it was for me to lie to Rhonda at our last slumber party? She kept asking about you." her head buried into my shoulder as we ascended the steps to the cafeteria to pick up our schedules. "She's going to _flip out_ when she sees us together the first time."

"Who cares what _anyone_ thinks? All that matters is me and you." I pulled her inside the cafeteria and kissed her in front of everyone.

"_Arnold_!" she pulled away and smacked my arm. "Have you lost your mind?"

"Perhaps." I chuckled.

"_Wilikers!_" Stinky stood across from us, staring in amazement. "I reckon I wasn't meant to see that."

"You were supposed to Stinky." I continued to pull Helga along. "We're dating." I held up our intertwined hands for him to examine.

"Wilikers" he repeated. "First Sid and Rhonda.. Now you two?"

"SID AND RHONDA?" we shouted at the same time.

"They're back together?" I scratched the side of my head, still trying to wrap my head around the idea of Sid and Rhonda dating again. "They haven't dated since… _forever!_ What happened?"

"It was one of them freaks of nature I reckon. Sid always wanted to get back together but Miss Rhonda only had eyes for you."

At that point Helga was crushing my hand and growling. "_Ouch!_" I whispered, pulling my hand away. "Well Stinky, if they're happy then I'm happy for them"

"Let's just hope princess doesn't change her mind again." Helga practically spat. "Arnold is no longer an option." she wrapped both of her arms around my right arm, gripping it tightly.

"Uh huh.." Stinky backed away. "Good luck with that."

"Way to scare the boy!" I pulled my arm from her grip and slung it over her shoulders.

"Do you blame me? I want princess to get the message. Nobody's touching those lips anymore but _me_." she scanned the room before quickly planting a kiss on me.

"Hey lovebirds! No making out in the cafeteria!" Gerald howled with laughter. Phoebe looked a little less amused.

"Shut up tall hair boy!" nearly everyone in the cafeteria was watching us.

"So you're not lovebirds?" he softly punched my shoulder.

"Gerald.. They didn't give _us_ a hard time when we were finally official. Come on." she linked their arms. "We need to get our schedules. Are you two coming?"

"Yeah. I'm just dying to see how they screwed up my schedule this year!" Helga was obviously still bitter about missing out on drama class last year... And the unmentionable sex education class… ugh.

The line for seniors wasn't as long as it was for the underclassmen. It was surreal to know that _we _were the seniors. Just a year ago we were looking over at the seniors schedule table with envy.. And now here we are. It's amazing how much everything can change in one year. I was reminded of that change when Helga wiggled out from underneath my arm to talk to Rhonda.

"I think your girlfriend has ADD." Gerald concluded.

"She's going to bug Rhonda about getting back together with Sid. You know how girls are.."

"WHAT?" all eyes fell on us again after Geralds outburst.

"Good gravy." my palm smacked my forehead.

"They're dating again?" he said in a much softer tone.

"Stinky just told us about it before you showed up." I got my schedule and began comparing it with Geralds. "NO classes together? Geez.. I need to pull Helga away from Rhonda so she can get her schedule and we can compare."

"I KNEW IT!" Rhondas loud voice echoed through the cafeteria.

"I think Helga just told Rhonda.." from across the room Helgas eyes met mine followed by a shrug.

"_Sorry_" she mouthed.

I motioned for her to come back and get her schedule. When she returned Rhonda was following close behind. "I knew it I KNEW IT!" she sang. "I knew it all along!"

"Must you make a scene princess?" she took shelter between me and Gerald.

"We heard about you and Sid. Congratulations!" I offered a friendly smile.

"Thanks." she gave Helga an awkward stare before looking back at me. "Congrats to you and Helga too. You're an _adorable_ couple."

"Thank you?" I suddenly felt confused.

"Whatever, I'm getting my schedule." Helga trudged off to the schedule table.

"She was really nervous about telling you." I attempted defending her behavior. "She didn't want you to be mad."

"Oh Arnold, I'm not mad." she clasped her hands together. "I'm glad you two finally fell for each other. I'll admit, when you hooked up last year when she was still dating Wolfgang it upset me. I wanted to be with you _so_ badly… but after the carnival incident, Sid and I reconnected.. And now? We're in love." she sighed dreamily.

"What? Wait… You _still_ think that Helga and I were sleeping together? We had kissed _once_! It didn't happen again until this summer. I usually don't let rumors bug me, but this rumor has gone on for too long. I've never slept with _anyone!_" Three sets of eyes stared at me awkwardly after I finished my rant. My cheeks felt like they were on fire..

"Wow.." Rhonda looked dumbfounded. "So her first _was_ with Wolfgang?" I don't think she was aware that she had just said that out loud.

"Rhonda!" Phoebe gasped.

"HA! I was right!" Gerald pumped his fist in the air.

My jaw literally felt like it became unhinged.

"What a surprise! Journalism." Helga returned to find an awkward stare down between her friends.. "Did I miss something?"

"No!" I threw out. "Nothing at all.. So how's your schedule? Get everything you wanted?" I realized I probably sounded like a nut job because I was talking so fast.

"Are you okay football head?" she gently took my schedule from my hand. "You seem.. Shaken."

"What? No! I'm fine… Mmhmm fine. Yep." my brain was trying to process how I could go from neutral to horrified in less than two seconds.

She ignored my erratic behavior and studied our schedules. "We didn't get _anything_ together?" she huffed. "The system is rigged! Dammit."

"Uh huh.." I kept my eyes anywhere but on her.

"What's wrong?" she grabbed my hand.

"See you guys later." Rhonda made a smooching noise before going to find Sid.

"Arnold?" she squeezed.

Phoebe and Gerald on the other hand were in the middle of a discussion a few feet away. I had run out of ways to avoid the awkwardness. When I finally met her gaze all of my apprehension disappeared. She held on to my hand and continued to look at me with great concern. She didn't care about my past (or lack thereof).. So why should I care about hers? Whatever did or didn't happen with Wolfgang was none of my business..

I pulled her in for a long kiss, relishing it. "My head is just in outer space today." I kissed her again for emphasis. "I'm fine.."

"You had me worried! I thought Rhonda did something stupid." her arms wrapped around my neck.

"Nope. There's nothing to worry about." I sighed.

* * *

_**(**Later On**)**_

The first day of school was the same as it always had been. Our teachers talked our ears off, we eat lunch, then they talk some more. Its been pretty much been the same formula since we started high school. The only difference this year was the incessant questioning from my peers.. All of them asking about Helga. The rumors from last year had carried on into this year. Several people believed we had been 'fooling around' since last year, others believed that I pitied Helga. _That_ rumor annoyed me.

"Hey Shortman, what are you doing home? You're usually out with your girlfriend. Is there trouble in paradise?" he joined me on the couch, propping his feet on the coffee table.

"Not really grandpa. Helga had to stay late for a journalism meeting… and we don't spend _all_ of our time together." I sunk down further into the couch.

"My young naïve grandson. It's okay! You're falling in love. Spending time together is a good thing."

"Whoa, _LOVE_? Noooo grandpa. It's way too soon to start throwing that word around. We've only been dating a month. People don't fall in love overnight."

"Why not? It happened to that Juliet and Romeo fellow!"

"Grandpa" I sighed. "They ended up killing themselves, remember? I did the play in fourth grade!" _This_ is why I didn't come to my grandpa for girl advice. The extent of his knowledge didn't go beyond 'NEVER EAT RASPBERRIES!'… and apparently he thought Romeo and Juliet were an ideal couple. It's no wonder I'm romantically challenged.

"Oh yeah.. You had to kiss that little girl with the one eyebrow!" he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I wonder what ever happened to her?"

"That's _Helga_ grandpa! My girlfriend?" it's official, grandpa was losing his marbles.

"Well she turned out nicely, eh Shortman?" he nudged me with his elbow and wiggled his eyebrows.

"I'm going to pretend you didn't just do that."

"Oh come on Arnold! Throw an old man a bone here. Ever since you got in your teen years you don't talk to me like you used to!" oh God.. A guilt trip was imminent. "I miss ya Shortman."

The look on his face was heartbreaking. Who wouldn't crack? "You know I love you and grandma. There's just some things that I need someone my own age to talk to. I don't mean to hurt your feelings. But you've been 17 before.. You can understand, right?"

"Of course I understand Arnold. I wouldn't want to talk to my grandpa either. I don't blame you!" he pat my shoulder and slowly stood up. "Pookie is almost done with dinner. See you then?"

"Yeah.." I nodded. "And grandpa?" he paused at the doorway and turned around. "Just because I'm growing up it doesn't mean I don't need you anymore." I hopped off the couch and hugged him. "_You're the closest thing I've had to a dad._" I whispered. "Thanks for being there."

"You're a good kid Shortman." he ruffled my hair. "Me and Pookie are mighty proud of you… and I know your mom and dad would be too."

"That means a lot grandpa." I sighed. "So I'll see you at dinner?"

"Unless Pookie hacks another watermelon, then we're getting takeout." he chuckled. "Now go on and call your girlfriend! Go on!" his hands grabbed my shoulders and pushed me towards the stairs.

My grandparents may have a few screws loose, but they certainly knew when to give me my space. Though I didn't talk about my love life with _anyone_ except Gerald, my grandpa knew that I didn't date just anyone. He knew Helga had to be pretty special to me.

Before I opened the door to my room, I noticed a light had been turned on. "Weird." I muttered. The lamp by my bed was on and the window to the roof was wide open.

"Boo!" I let out a small gasp and turned around to find Helga laying on my couch, her legs were crossed and she was propped up on her elbows. "You should really learn to lock your windows football head." she grinned.

"Give me a heart attack why don't you?" I uncrossed her legs and plopped down on top of her.

"And what do you think you're doing?" she tugged at the collar of my shirt.

I leaned down and kissed her briefly. "I didn't say hi yet." I kissed her again. "Hi."

"Hi." her hands rested on my cheeks.

"So how was the meeting with the staff?" I subconsciously began playing with the ends of her hair. "Were you able to lift the underclassmen ban?"

"We're having another meeting about it next week. We're going to vote." her face turned sour. "Those asses are going to ruin it… everything I worked so hard for."

"You can do it." I assured. "Don't let them silence you."

"You're too good to be real." she readjusted her torso until it touched mine. I visibly shuttered from her warmth. "You're killing me football head." she scooted out from underneath me. "Do you think we can discuss something?"

"Is this the same thing as 'we need to talk'?" I sat up next to her. "Is everything okay?"

"Phoebe sort of told me something… about what Rhonda said this morning?"

I felt the color drain from my face. "What about it?"

"Why aren't you freaking out and demanding answers?"

"Because I don't want to make you talk about something if it would make you uncomfortable." I pressed my lips to her temple. "Your personal business is personal for a reason. I'm not going to ask.. Because I respect you."

"If you asked me.. I would tell you." she intertwined our fingers. "If we want to make this relationship work, we need to be able to talk about _anything_.."

"Asking you about your sexual past isn't something a gentleman would do." I shrugged. "And frankly, your answers wouldn't change how I feel about you. Everyone has a past, but all that matters is... You're in my future."

Even I had to chuckle at how cheesy I sounded. Helga had the opposite reaction.. Her eyes began glistening with fresh tears. "You want me in your future?" she bit her bottom lip.

"I'd like that Helga.. I really would." we both stared at each other for a few more moments. I could have sat there all night long.

"Look.. You don't even need to ask me. Wolfgang and I-"

"Shh." I pressed my finger to her lips. "I told you it's not important."

"Okay" she nodded. "But my offer still stands.."

"And it's not necessary."

"And you're stubborn." she smirked. "Now shut up and kiss me."

Now _that_ was more like it.

* * *

**Sorry this chapter took a few extra days to get online. My internet crapped out on me and it took a few days to get it fixed. So hopefully I wont have any problems now!**

**Thanks for reading! The next chapter should be up soon =]**


	13. Ready, Aim, Misfire

**I want to send out a MAJOR thank you to anyone who has read or reviewed this story so far. You're all amazing! Hearing your feedback always makes my day that much better. The HA! Community out there is unbelievably awesome. You all get a standing-O from me =P**

_****About this chapter****_**- the whole ordeal with Arnold's parents leaving to San Lorenzo and the discrepancy with the day Arnold was born is kind of confusing to people (including me!) His parents left October 5th****, and it's been suggested that Arnold's birthday is on the 7****th****….yet his parents left AFTER he had is first birthday. (according to "The Journal") So in my story, his parents left right before his 2****nd**** birthday (sad and probably incorrect, I know).. But I figured it would be easier that way. Lol.**

**Disclaimer: Hey Arnold isn't mine..**

* * *

_**(**Two Months Later**)- October**_

**Helgas POV:**

_'How are you doing that?'_

_'It's a magic carpet!'_

_'It's... lovely?'_

'_You uh… you don't wanna go for a ride do you?… we could get out of the palace? See the world?'_

'_Is it safe?'_

'_Sure! Do you trust me?'_

'_What?'_

'_Do you trust me?'_

'…_.Yes.'_

"Why the hell are we watching this bull?" I let out a long irritated sigh.

"SHHHH!" the others held their fingers to their lips.

"This is the part where Aladdin woos Jasmine!" Rhonda sighed romantically. "I mean seriously, what girl _wouldn't_ be smitten with a man like Aladdin?"

All the girls began doing a collective agreement. I on the other hand, remained silent. Dating Arnold was four hundred BILLION times better than any fabricated Disney romance. Nothing could compare to living out the real deal.

"Do any of you realize what 'A Whole New World' is really about?" I shouted over their cooing.

"He's showing her the world." Nadine sighed. "A life she's missing out on behind the walls of her fathers palace."

"Oh sure.. That's what Disney wants you to think." I snickered. "Take a second to _really _listen to the words."

Rhonda rolled her eyes and rewound the movie to the beginning of the song. "What's your point Helga?"

"I can open your eyes, _take you_ wonder by wonder. Over, sideways and under on a magic carpet ride?" I held my hands up "Do you _realize_ what he's saying? He's going to TAKE HER? And in several different positions I may add. Boys adventurous!"

"Helga!" Phoebe gasped.

"Just keep listening. Crimeny!"

'_Don't you dare close your eyes.'_

'_A hundred thousand things to see'_

'_Hold your breath it gets better'_

"Are you guys NOT hearing what I'm hearing?" the girls stared blankly at the screen with their mouths slightly open.

"You're sick!" Rhonda spat. "You ruined a perfectly pure song."

"I'm ever so certain I'll never be able to watch this again." Lila covered her eyes. "Oh dear.."

"Now you've gone and traumatized Lila!" Rhonda huffed.

"If the girl can handle watching chickens get slaughtered on the farm, she can handle Aladdin and Jasmine's foreplay."

"Ew!" Sheena gasped. "How on earth did this get so graphic so fast?"

"Foreplay? Really Helga?.. Good God. That's just _wrong!_"

"No, what's wrong is a bunch of 17 year old girls watching Disney flicks. When did we turn into a bunch of saps? These get-togethers used to be _fun_ Rhonda" I propped my feet up on some spare pillows. "Face it, this is lame."

She let out an overly dramatic gasp and covered her mouth. "Well I've never!"

"Never what _Princess_? Come on! Spice things up a bit."

"You know what? _Fine!_ Lets play a game then. Will that make the sicko happy?"

"What kind of game?" my eyebrow raised.

"We'll play Never have I ever." she crossed her arms in front of her. "It's easy enough to play."

I got up off the floor and stood face to face with her. "Fine. Be prepared to spill your guts princess."

After fifteen minutes Rhonda was already down to five fingers while the rest of us had at least 8. The 'never have I ever' questions were in a word: lame. Nobody was saying anything interesting. Phoebe was next up which we all knew was going to be less than thrilling. "Never have I ever…. Cheated on a test."

"Oh Crimeny Phoebs! That's the best you got?" I put down one of my fingers. "Princess, we're _all_ getting bored here. I think we should just call it a night."

"Well its _my_ turn now so.." she cleared her throat. "Never have I ever…. Had sex."

The others gasped and stared at one another while me and Rhonda gave each other a stare down. She didn't say it to freak the others out.. She wanted to get an answer from me to confirm her suspicions…

"You're a liar." I challenged.

"And how do you know?"

"Arnold was in the locker room when Sid was bragging to everyone how you 'made a man out of him' last week.."

"You just don't want to admit you slept with Wolfgang!" she attempted to hide the blush on her cheeks. "Arnold won't sleep with tainted goods. I know you two haven't done it yet!" while the other gasped, I laughed. The thing about me and Rhonda is that we both like tearing the other one down a peg. We found it amusing to come up with new ways to argue. Though the others didn't get it, me and Rhonda understood what we said isn't supposed to be taken to heart.

"Unlike Sid, Arnold doesn't hop in the sack with the first girl who spreads um."

"Helga!" Phoebe attempted to chastise me. "This is really too much. Let's try doing something else because this obviously isn't working out"

"Fine." we said simultaneously.

"There's a little matter we need to discuss." I stood up from our circle on the floor. "Arnold's 18th birthday is next Friday.. And I want to make it special."

"Helga, don't you remember what happened the last time Arnold had a birthday party?" Sheena rocked back and forth in the fetal position. "It wasn't pleasant."

The last birthday party Arnold ever had was for his sixth birthday. His grandparents threw him a party on the roof of the boarding house and we were all invited. Everything was going okay until it was time to open presents.. His grandparents had bought him a new model airplane. Something about seeing the airplane had made him snap, he threw the plane off the roof and took off without saying another word. Nobody at that point knew the story about his parents and what happened. I found out later that he himself had barely started realizing that they weren't coming back for him, and seeing the plane had made him lose it. Ever since that incident, nobody has attempted to throw him a party. His grandparents left it up to him to decide if he wanted one, and every year he opted to ignore his birthday entirely.

"I'm going to talk to him about it." I remained calm. "His last party didn't go well, but that was eleven years ago. Hopefully he'll have an open mind and listen to me."

"And what if he refuses? Gerald already talked to him about it and he seemed unresponsive to the idea of a party."

"Well Phoebs, I have one thing Gerald doesn't have." I smacked my lips together, making kissing noises. "He may not realize it, but a party would be good for him! So even if he refuses, it'll end up being a surprise party! He'll love it if he just tries it."

"Sounds like a disaster waiting to happen…. You know I'm in!" Rhonda grabbed a pad of paper and a pen. "Triangle finger sandwiches of square?"

"No no, none of your fancy finger foods this time princess. I want this to be a night he wont soon forget... We're throwing him the rager of the century."

"_Wicked_." she grinned from ear to ear.

* * *

_**(**A Few Days Later**)**_

I had planned on talking to him today. We were going to go out to lunch at Slausens, and I would _beg_ him to allow this party to happen. I had come up with over fifty ways to beg him.. There was only one problem; he didn't come to school today. I had began to panic when lunch came and went and there was still no sign of him. By last period I was sick with worry. Me and Gerald had English last period together, I wasted no time before demanding Arnolds location.

"Have you checked a calendar today Pataki?" he held his school planner up, pointing at the date.

"October fifth.." I read aloud. After a moment I realized the significance. "Oh no.. How could I _forget?_ I'm STUPID!" I cradled my forehead in my palms. "He must think I'm such a douche."

"He spends today by himself, you know that. It's his spiritual thing.."

"But I'm his _girlfriend_! I should be there for him.." I glanced at the clock in the classroom. There was still thirty minutes left of class before I could go to his house.

"I don't think being his girlfriend will make a difference. When it comes to his parents and his birthday it's all a touchy subject." I gulped loudly at the mention of his birthday. "Phoebe told me about your 'birthday rager' on Friday… and let me just say _BIG MISTAKE_."

"You aren't helping right now!" I gingerly rubbed my temples. "I just need to talk to him! Everything will be okay."

"I've known the boy since we were kids… his birthday depresses him! Don't make him celebrate it.… need I remind you of his sixth birthday party?"

"I remember Gerald." I groaned. "Just let me handle this on my own."

"Okay Helga… just don't come crying to me when he gets pissed off."

The moment the bell rang, I took off like a bat out of hell. My legs had never carried me anywhere so quickly. I began knocking rapidly on the front door of the boarding house and still trying to catch my breath. His grandma opened the door and smiled brightly at me. "Why Eleanor Roosevelt, what brings you here?"

"Is Arnold home?" my gaze traveled to her right hand. Why a woman her age needs a blowtorch, I'll never know.. "He didn't come to school today."

"Kimba is in his room. He hasn't come out all day. He said he wasn't feeling well.." her demeanor changed slightly "He'd probably like some company today." she moved out of the doorway and ushered me inside.

"Thanks.." I sent her an appreciative glance. As I went upstairs I could feel the tension and sadness seeping through the air. Today had to be just as hard for his grandparents as it was for him. When I reached his bedroom I took a few deep breaths before knocking on the door.

"_Not now grandpa.._" he muttered in the distance.

"It's Helga.." I leaned my head against the door. "Can I come in?" there was some rustling on his side of the door followed by a clicking sound. It slowly opened, revealing a very depressed Arnold. "Hey" I took a step closer but still didn't touch him.

"Hey.." He fully opened the door and allowed me to come inside. "I wasn't expecting any visitors" his attire consisted of pajamas and an extreme case of bed head.

"I should have been with you since this morning." I looked down at my shoes. "I'm sorry."

"I don't need a babysitter." his arms snaked around my waist before he planted a kiss on my cheek.

Without hesitation I pulled him into a bear hug, holding him tightly to me. His grip intensified, reciprocating the hug with full force. He may not have given any inclination, but I knew more than anything else he needed a hug today. In that moment in time, I wasn't his girlfriend.. I was just a friend, because that is what he really needed. We stood there in each others arms for a good five minutes before breaking apart. He looked extremely tired and washed out like he hadn't slept all night.

"Do you want me to stay?" he thought about it a moment before nodding his head up and down. "Okay.." I took his hand in mine. "But I want you to sleep… I'll stay as long as you want me to, but I think you'd feel better if you slept." I pulled him over to his bed and we both laid down.

"You don't have to stay and watch me _sleep_ Helga.. You're more than welcome to go." his eyes opened and closed slowly, followed by a long and drawn out yawn. "I'll be okay."

"I'm not going anywhere" I assured. "When you wake up, I'll be right here beside you."

"_Thanks_" he whispered, drifting off into a peaceful sleep. I repositioned myself so I could snuggle into his chest and relish his warmth. It was almost like listening to a lullaby, his breathing and his heartbeat were two of the most beautiful things I've ever heard. My eyelids began feeling heavier and heavier and I found myself joining him in his slumber.

When I opened my eyes again the sun had already set and the stars were visible from his skylight. Arnold was sitting on the end of the bed with a picture frame in his hands and a stoic look on his face. "Arnold?"

"Sleep well?" he glanced over at me and smiled softly.

"Mmhmm.. And you?" I slithered over to him on my stomach.

"I got about twenty minutes in." he chuckled.

"Arnold!"

"I'm fine Helga… and besides, I liked watching you sleep."

"This is getting a little too 'Twilight' for me." I mock-gagged. Now that I was sitting closer to him I had a better view of the picture in the picture frame. There was no doubt about it.. It was a photo of his parents.

"My dad was an anthropologist.. And my mom was a biologist and a doctor. They traveled all over the world together." he pointed to the ancient ruins behind them in the photo. "I was actually born in San Lorenzo in the middle of a volcanic eruption."

Hearing him talk about his parents and his past was like listening to a sacred myth. It was something hardly anyone had ever heard and it was special. I couldn't help but listen in awe.

"I was a few months old when my parents decided to come back to Hillwood and stay with my grandparents. They really liked living here…" he traced his finger over their image and sighed. "The Green Eyed people of San Lorenzo were good friends with my parents before I was born, they helped each other out. My mother provided them with medicine to heal the sleeping sickness and it saved their lives. My parents were like unofficial members of their people. Right before my second birthday, an old friend of my fathers came to Hillwood and begged my parents to return to San Lorenzo for one final mission to help the Green Eyed people… they left on October fifth and promised to be back soon. They took off in their plane.." he took a deep breath "… and nobody ever saw or heard from them again"

A stray tear fell down my cheek at the conclusion of his story. I knew his parents disappeared, but hearing the story from Arnold himself made it much more heartbreaking. He held the picture frame loosely in his hands, studying the photo. I couldn't imagine not having any memories of the people who meant so much to me. I didn't know what to say to make him feel better… _was_ there anything?

"What about their plane?" I wiped the tear away before he could see.

"It was never found.." he set the photo back into one of his drawers. "They stopped looking for them a long time ago.."

"I'm so sorry.." were the only words I could formulate.

He cupped my cheek in his hand and covered my mouth with his. It wasn't like other kisses that we had shared in the past… it was full of an emotion I couldn't register. It was unnerving to say the least.

"Don't be sorry… I've heard that my whole life from everyone else." his hand fell into my lap. "My circumstances are unfortunate… but I still have amazing grandparents, a best friend… and you. That's more than what I deserve." his semi-bloodshot eyes gazed at me affectionately for a few more moments before he leaned in to capture my lips with his once again.

I wouldn't deny that the kissing was phenomenal, glorious, sexy, _perfect_.. But in the back of my mind I knew Arnold was just trying to get his mind off of his parents. By the time we had sprawled out on his bed I had decided enough was enough… and we needed to discuss his birthday which was in just two days.

"Arnold?" I turned my head away from him, which induced a line of kisses down my neck. He merely hummed in response. "I hate to ruin the mood… but I wanted to ask you something." he paused, hovering above me with an eyebrow arched. "Your birthday is on Friday…A- And I was wondering-"

"No."

"You didn't even let me finish!" I scoffed.

"No birthday conversations please. I'd rather not go there." he rolled off and collapsed next to me.

"This is an important birthday Arnold." I turned over on my side. "I want you to enjoy it.. It's _your_ day"

"I don't enjoy birthdays. It's like celebrating another year of being an orphan." he kept his gaze focused on the skylight. "Like every day I wake up and realize they're gone forever isn't bad enough.." he muttered.

"So that's just it? End of discussion?" I knew I was getting irritated too quickly, but I couldn't help it. He was being unresponsive and distant!

"Look, I can understand your need to acknowledge my 18th birthday… but I don't think a party would be the cure. I don't like birthday parties in my honor.. And I don't think that's going to change." my bottom lip protruded pathetically. "Look… how about I make a deal with you?" he intertwined our fingers with a tight squeeze.

"I'm listening"

"We'll have dinner just you and me... But _no_ happy birthday crap. Okay?"

Well, it wasn't my plan but at least it was progress. Too bad he was getting a party whether he liked it or not. If my theory was correct, Arnold would realize that a party isn't as terrible as it seems. He would have a killer time with all of our friends and we'd party like rock stars until the sun came up.

"Okay.. Dinner it is." I leaned forward and kissed his forehead. "Do you think maybe after dinner we could go back to my place? _Hang out_?" I emphasized those words to throw him off. "We could watch a movie or… something.."

"Or something?" he smirked. "Miss Pataki, are you intending to seduce me?"

My leg hooked over his hip and I pulled myself on top of him. "_You don't need to be seduced._" I whispered in his ear. "_Am I right_?"

"I'm no man-whore" he chuckled and abruptly switched positions with me. "It's not a matter of seduction… it's much more than that."

"Love" I concluded. We both paused awkwardly before separating completely. "Sorry.. My mental filter decided to take a vacation."

"It's fine Helga." he chuckled. "and of course I'll come over after dinner. Are your parents going to be home?"

"Miriam is visiting her sister and Big Bob is being forced to go with her… so the house will be empty."

"Perfect! A nice quiet evening… just you and me."

"Yep.." I chuckled nervously. "Just… you… and me."

_Please let this work…_

* * *

_**(**October 7**__**th**__****)**_

"So you're coming over after Arnold and I leave, right? You got the balloons? Streamers? Keg?" I mentally checked off the items in my head.

"_Yes Helga"_ she sighed into the receiver. "_We've gone over the plan a hundred times already. Everyone knows what to do! Me and Nadine are going to set up while you're distracting Arnold, when the others get here we're going to wait for your signal before we hide. And when you say 'Where is that stupid light switch?' we turn on the lights and scream SURPRISE!"_

"Kudos princess.. This party should be a success." I finished applying a small amount of makeup to my eyes and blinked a few times. I _really_ detested having to wear this stuff, but it was a special night… despite what Arnold thought. The doorbell rang downstairs and I nearly jumped half a foot in the air. "He's here.. Now get your ass over here. I'll keep in touch." I slid the cell phone into my pocket and ran downstairs to open the door.

It took ever ounce of my willpower to not shout 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY!' and kiss him savagely. He stared at me awkwardly and waited for me to say something. "Are you okay?" he chuckled.

"I'm fine!" I snapped out of my trance. "Come here." my index finger motioned for him to step forward. He hesitantly stepped in front of me and paused. "Aren't you going to kiss me?" I batted my eyelashes innocently.

"A fate worse than death." he groaned dramatically before kissing me for what seemed like an eternity… though I hated to end it, our steamy kiss couldn't last all night. I had to get him out of here before Rhonda and Nadine showed up to 'pimp out' my house.

"Okay Romeo." I pulled away and hopped down the stairs. "I'm _starving_! Chop-chop!"

"Yes ma'am!" he saluted.

Like all of our previous dates, we ended up at Slausens. He refused to go somewhere nice like Chez Paris, or _anywhere_ really.. Luckily I didn't mind Slausens. We sat on the same side of the booth and continued the chain of cheesy teenage romance clichés. I would offer to feed him some ice cream and intentionally miss his mouth so I could lick it off him before kissing him.

_Good God, chocolate tastes even better when it comes off of Arnolds gorgeous face! _

"You're extra hands on today." he noted. "Why?" his look insinuated that this was a birthday induced make out session.

"I can't help it." I kissed him again. "There's something about you tonight.. You're irresistible."

"I expect to read a poem about it later" he snickered.

"Shut up!" my fist lightly collided with his shoulder. "Punk."

"Don't you mean _irresistible _punk?" he slid out of the booth and took off before I could grab him.

"Football head!" I growled, following in suite. He ran halfway down the block before ducking into the alley. I grinned victoriously and shouted 'AH HA!' while posing at the entrance of the alley. I was more than shocked to find the alley empty. "Arnold? This isn't funny!" the sun was slowly disappearing behind the horizon and it was getting darker. "ARNOLD!" I hissed.

"_You_ are actually _scared_?" he popped up from behind me.

"AHHH!"

"Calm down!" he wrapped his arms around me. "Are you really that creeped out by the dark?"

"I'm more afraid of the RAPISTS who hide in the darkness than the darkness itself." I bit his chin hard enough to make him wince. "You butt head!"

"Why'd you bite my chin? You viper!" he reciprocated my actions and bit my chin.

"Ouch!" I attempted to pull away but his grip only intensified. "You're a brat" I smirked.

"I learned from the best!"

"Who? Gerald?"

He scoffed and began tickling me. In the midst of our laughing my phone vibrated in my pocket.

'_Get ur asses back here! We R WAITING'_

"I don't know about you.. But I'm ready to go back to my place." I shuddered when a breeze drifted between the buildings.

"Then lets go!" he grinned, looking almost mischievous… it was kind of hot. Did he really think we were going back to my place to fool around? We've never done anything before but _kiss!_

When we reached my stoop I pretended to search for my keys while Arnold waited anxiously. I made sure and fiddled with the handle for a few moments to let everyone know of our presence. The lights were out just like we had planned, and it was dead silent.

"You didn't leave a light on?" he gripped my hips from behind and followed me into the darkness.

"Where is that stupid light switch?" I practically shouted.

"Why are you shou-"

"SURPRISE!" the lights suddenly turned on and all of our classmates popped out from their hiding spots.

Some silly string began flying towards us in various streams and everyone clapped and hollered. Arnold stood there motionless and covered with silly string. "umm.. surprise?" I grinned. "Are you going to say anything?"

"You lied.." he backed himself into the door. "You lied to me." his eyes darted around the room before meeting mine. "You _lied_!" his voiced raised.

"So how about that party?" Rhonda chuckled while the others watched us with curiosity. "I SAID PARTY!" she screeched. Everyone scattered into different rooms and a sound system was turned on.

"I can't believe you." He grabbed the door handle and flung the door open.

"Wait! Don't go Arnold.. Don't you see that your friends are trying to show you a good time?" I chased him down the steps and attempted to grab his arm.

"YOU planned it! They just went along with it… I honestly don't know what to say to you right now." he fumbled with his keys before unlocking his car. "You wasted perfectly good booze in there. You can't have a birthday party without a birthday person. Bye Helga.."

"Stop it! You're being overly dramatic about this! It's just a birthday party! Not your execution!" I stood in the way of his car door so it wouldn't close.

"To me there's no difference." he growled. "_Move_"

"Look, I know I should have told you about it… but you wouldn't even TRY and talk to me about it! I thought maybe a surprise party would change your mind.."

"_Change my mind_? You're right.. It did change my mind." as soon as the words left his mouth I gripped the car for support to keep myself from screaming at the top of my lungs.

"What does that mean?"

"I don't know yet." He held the steering wheel so tight that his knuckles had turned bone white.

"I didn't mean to upset you Arnold…. You know how strongly I feel about you..." his face softened slightly. "I just wanted to show you a good time… and to give you a reason to smile on your birthday instead of avoiding it entirely." I had practically knelt down in the street next to his car. "Please don't end things because of a birthday party." my voice wavered. "_Please_"

He sat there completely silent for a good five minutes staring straight forward. "You want me to party tonight?" he finally made eye contact with me.

"That's why we're all here." I sighed. The fluctuation of emotion tonight was starting to take its toll on me.

"Fine." he said with no hint of any emotion. "I'll party."

He practically pushed me out of his way to get out of the car. It was no secret that he was peeved at me. All I could do was hope that he had a killer time tonight.. Or else I would be doomed. "_Party Gods_?" I spoke to they sky. "_If you're listening… I need a miracle_" Arnold had already gone inside and slammed the door behind him, leaving me outside. "**PLEASE**" I asked the sky again out of desperation.

I quietly closed the front door behind me and instantly began looking for Phoebe. Since Gerald refused to attend, she was flying solo. I ended up finding her in the dining room with Sheena and Eugene… playing cards. "Phoebe? I need to talk to you.. _now_"

"Certainly Helga" she excused herself and followed me back outside. "I'm assuming this is about Arnolds reaction to your surprise party?" she sat on one of the front steps.

"He's _livid_ Phoebs… I've never seen him that mad. He agreed to come inside, but I'm afraid he's going to dump me after this.. God I'm _STUPID_!" I wailed.

"You tried to do something nice… though it backfired." she said softly. "But it doesn't necessarily mean he'll break up with you."

"I should have listened to everyone.. Including him." I sobbed quietly. "I deserve to be broken up with.."

"Just go back inside.. Let the chips fall where they may. The party is already going on, there's nothing that can be done anymore. Give Arnold a chance to come around.. Maybe he'll surprise you?"

"And what if he doesn't?" I sniffed

"Then you proceed from there." she grabbed my wrist and pulled me up. "Go see what he's up to."

"I hope he isn't sitting in a corner somewhere all alone.." we walked back into the party to the sound of chanting teenage boys. "What's going on in there?" I pointed to the living room.

"Harold and the guys are getting people to do keg stands." she shook her head disapprovingly. "They already got Rhonda and Sid to do it before you guys even got here. And a word for the wise, Harold spiked the punch."

"Duly noted Phoebs.." I went back into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water, sniffing it before taking a swig. "And we're clear" I gave her a thumbs up.

Despite the loud laughing and chatter, the party wasn't too out of control. If it had been anyone else's birthday, Arnold would be having a good time instead of brooding somewhere all by himself. I hadn't seen him in the kitchen or the dining room, and I doubted he would be in the living room watching people doing keg stands… the only other place he could be was upstairs. I checked Olgas old room first and then Bob and Miriams. I cracked open my bedroom door and called out his name with no response. I heard someone quietly make a grunting sound and I opened the door all the way, turning on the lights. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. Rhonda and Sid were in _my bed_ with their shirts off and fooling around. "IT BURNS!" I covered my eyes and backed out.

"Helga! What happened?" Sheena emerged from the bathroom.

I gabbed her shoulders roughly and shook her. "I've seen… _Hell_."

"What are you talking about?" her eyes widened. "Helga, have you been drinking?"

"I wish.." I released her shoulders "Whatever you do…. _don't_ go in there!" I pointed to my bedroom door. "Part of your soul _dies_"

"Okay Helga?" she backed away awkwardly. "Whatever you say."

She took off down the stairs in a hurry and left me standing in the hallway. It was only then that I realized he wasn't upstairs. Had he left out a window or something? I went back downstairs to find Phoebe again and ask her if she had seen Arnold leave when I was halted by the sound of '_ARNOLD! ARNOLD! ARNOLD!'_

"_No…_ WAY!" I gasped, instantly running into the living room. To my complete and utter horror, Arnold was being suspended upside down by Harold and Stinky with his lips attached to the hose of the keg while the others chanted encouragingly. "ARNOLD!" I screeched. "Get your ass down from there!"

"He's a _legend_!" Harold mused. "I've never seen anyone do it seven times in a row."

"SEVEN?" I slapped him hard over the head, causing him to release Arnold in midair and dropping him harshly to the floor. "Arnold!" I knelt down next to him and made sure he wasn't bleeding. "Are you okay?"

"_Heyyyyyyy Helga_! Everyone! It's my girlfriend Helga!" he shouted way louder than necessary. "_Great _party." even in his drunken state he still had a hint of anger in his voice.

"I need to speak with you.. _NOW_" I pulled him to his feet.

"Did you hear that guys?" he grinned. "She wants to '_talk_'.. hehe.."

"GO ARNOLD!" they slapped his back as we walked by.

"Put a sock in it you perverts!" I growled. We struggled to get upstairs due to Arnolds complete lack of cooperation. I was forced to literally _drag_ him. My room was currently off limits, so I took him into Big Bob and Miriams room and chucked him on to their water bed. "Are you crazy? Did aliens take your brain?" I paced back and forth. "What possessed you to do SEVEN keg stands in a row? I know you weren't happy about all of this tonight, but REALLY? SEVEN? You could have given yourself alcohol poisoning!" I stopped pacing and studied him. He was casually leaned back on his elbows and watching me through half lidded eyes. "Your 'sexy' face isn't going to work on me tonight football head."

"When we came back here tonight" he hiccupped. "I thought we were going to _do it_" when he moved slightly, the water bed rocked him from side to side… his face turned pale.

"Are you going to puke?" I frantically looked around for the nearest trash can.

"You know Helga.." he laid back down again, his stomach making a gurgling sound.. "We can still do it… you, me.. And the other Helga" he pointed to the vacant spot next to my left. "_Pretty girls_!" he giggled.

Note to self: never let Arnold drink again.

"You're seeing double you dumb ass." I slapped his thigh which jolted him back into the sitting position. I decided to ignore the fact that he was into the idea of a threesome. "You need to go to bed.."

"Only if you're coming too." he pat the spot next to him on the bed. I hesitantly sat down next to him and sighed in defeat. In the blink of an eye he peeled his shirt over his oddly shaped head.

"Arnold! Stop!" I grabbed his hands before they could undo his belt, and I shamefully failed to look away from his naked chest. He took my close proximity and used it to his advantage, kissing me roughly. His lips tasted like sour beer and watermelon candy. "What are you doing?" I spat.

"I.. love you.." he mumbled incoherently, reminding me that he was out of it and had no clue what he was saying.

"It's time to go to sleep football head."

"You don't love me too?" he pouted like a five year old.

I ran my fingers through his hair and roughly pulled him closer to me. "_You know I do_"

Our noses rubbed together and he let out a hum of satisfaction. We sat there in silence for a while with our foreheads pressed together… I didn't know what was going to happen when he sobered up, and if he was going to remember this conversation. I couldn't take his 'I love you' seriously because just the other day that very subject came up and he avoided it entirely.

"_Helga_?" he whispered.

"Hm?"

"Can you tell them to slow the ride down? It's making me…"

_The ride?_

"What are you talking abo-?" his forehead disconnected with mine and vomit spewed from his mouth…. And into my lap. "Fantastic." I grimaced.

* * *

**So there you have chapter 13! I know, I know.. They may seem out of character in this chapter, but Helgas intentions **_**were**_** good. I know it may seem like she didn't care about what he felt, but she wasn't intending to upset him to the point of intoxication. Lol. And Arnolds angst is my interpretation of how he would feel in the future (he IS a teenager after all) lol.. Anyway, I hope the next chapter will be up soon! I'm already working on it! =P**

**Until then, read and review! It makes me happy lol.**


	14. Feel the pressure

**Thank you ALL for your awesome reviews on the last chapter. Helgas theory on Disney sexual innuendo is all courtesy of my own sick mind. Hehehe… Anyway, I'm not sure how long part two is going to end up being, but I've already wrote down what the main focus of the next 5 chapters will be about… so expect **_**at least **_**5 more! Lol**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold!**

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**Arnolds POV:**

I remember a party. Specifically _my_ birthday party. I had left Helga outside to stew in her own selfishness, I wanted to prove how pointless this party was. I saw her come inside and grab Phoebe and take her back outside. In her absence I took a large cup of the obviously tampered punch and drank it with a vengeance. At some point after that the guys had convinced me to hang upside down and chug from the keg hose. I knew all of this would tick Helga off, yet it didn't stop me because though I was doing this to spite her I had began to forget why I was doing this in the first place... The last thing I remember was hitting the floor after Helga screamed… Everything after that is fuzzy.

It must have been morning... There was a bright light shining in and giving me an extreme headache. For starters, I had no clue where I was and I was afraid of opening my eyes. The smell of pine scented cleaning product filled my nose, fueling my flip flopping stomach. I groaned loudly and covered my face with my hands.

"Nice of you to wake up football head." Helga grumbled. My eyes instantly shot open and I scanned the room.

"Why am I in your room?" I propped myself up on my elbows, ignoring my pounding headache.

"Crimeny football head, you must have _really_ been out of it." I had barely noticed she was in tattered clothes and was wearing yellow rubber gloves and her hair was piled on top of her head in a loose bun. I looked down at my own attire… which only consisted of a pair of boxers.

"What the heck happened last night Helga?" I yelled. When I threw my legs over the side of the bed my stomach took a turn for the worst. I bolted into the next room and threw my head into the toilet. She stood in the doorway and watched me vomiting pathetically, her face was void of any emotion.

"Enjoying the show?" I hissed.

"Trust me, after the sixth act it loses its novelty." she rolled her eyes and continued her cleaning. She sprayed some sort of window cleaner on the pictures in the hallway and wiped them with a paper towel. When the smell hit my nose I began vomiting all over again.

"Stop with the cleaning!" I spat into the toilet before flushing it. "And where are my clothes?"

"Pipe down dummy! Do you want to make your head feel any worse?"

Though my legs were shaky, I managed to get to my feet. "I want answers!" her eyes traveled south and I became self conscious, my hands instantly covered my front. "Eyes up! Stop it!"

"Your clothes are in the dryer Arnold. Calm down." She grabbed a mop bucket filled with cleaning products. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to clean up the mess you made."

"Wait! The mess _I_ made?" I followed closely behind her. "What happened last night?"

We went downstairs and nearly everything in the living room was out of place and tossed around. Had I _really_ done that? Why didn't anyone stop me?

"You may not remember last night but I doubt our classmates will be forgetting it anytime soon. You put on quite the show football head."

"Stop being vague. Why can't you stop cleaning for five seconds and look at me!" a sponge collided with my face. "Very mature Helga.."

"I don't have much to say to you right now Arnold. You better be thanking your lucky stars that I didn't toss you out on your ass last night."

"Can you _please_ tell me what happened last night? You know, I shouldn't even have to beg you after you deliberately lied to me and threw me some raging drunken paradise party."

Her face softened and she plopped down on the couch. "I didn't mean to hurt you okay?… I never would have forced this if I would have known you'd react _that_ badly."

"What did I do?.. Yell a lot? Dance? What?" I knelt down in front of her.

"When I found you last night you were doing a keg stand. Harold informed me you had done seven in a row." she finally looked at me and shook her head disapprovingly. "I took you upstairs so I could figure out what to do next… you were babbling about how you thought we were going to have sex."

_Holy crap.._ _I really admitted that? I already feel like an idiot._

"Then after that you said you still wanted to do it."

"Did we?" my eyes widened.

"NO! Stupid. Now shut up and listen!" she raised her fist threateningly. "_Any way_… you said some… stuff... And you took your shirt off… then you kissed me. You kept yammering on about how the ride was too fast, and then you barfed in my lap." she cringed. "When I tried yelling at you, you passed out on the bed... I took the opportunity to go change into something else. When I came back to get you… you weren't there. I checked the bathroom and all of the bedrooms. The only thing I found was your pants in the hallway…"

"I WENT DOWNSTAIRS WITHOUT CLOTHES?" I held on to the sides on my head and fell on my butt.

"Sort of.." she sighed. "You went downstairs in your boxers. You turned the sound system up and started dancing on the coffee table and singing along with the song."

"Oh my _God_" I whimpered into my palms. My headache continued to rage on..

"Harold got footage of it." her tone suggested that she really didn't want to be the one to tell me that. "He took off before I could delete it off of his phone. And when I tried getting you down from the coffee table you started throwing a fit. You were yelling about the party and how I always ruin everything in your life.. The whole time you were flopping around the room like a chicken with its head cut off. You ran into nearly _every_ piece of furniture in the room." she took another sponge from the bucket and fiddled with it. "So I ended up taking you back upstairs and you barfed in the hallway and then several more times in my room.. Then you passed out, and here we are."

I knew I was blushing from sheer embarrassment and shame. I didn't even know how to respond to my own behavior. I barfed on my girlfriend, stripped down to practically nothing and gave my classmates a show and made an all around fool of myself. This isn't something you can live down very easily.

"Wow…" I concluded.

"So are we broken up now or what?" she didn't bother using subtlety. "Because last night you made it pretty clear that you don't like me very much."

I pulled myself up on the couch so I could sit next to her. "For the record, you don't always ruin everything... That was just the alcohol talking, and I don't _dislike_ you at all. But I will say I don't appreciate you ignoring my feelings… you took what I said about my birthday and completely disregarded it. You threw me some wild party and expected me to roll with it. If the circumstances had been switched you would have _killed_ me."

"I know… and I'm sorry okay? I wasn't trying to put you into an uncomfortable situation… I was hoping you would finally accept your birthday and start living again. I know the whole situation with your parents makes it difficult, but would they want you to ignore the day you came into their lives? That day probably meant _everything_ to them! Just because they're not here it doesn't mean they wouldn't want you to celebrate their life's work… _you _Arnold_._"

I grabbed her hand and squeezed it. Her words sent me a message that I had been failing to hear for years now. She understood things about me that nobody else could. She always had. Just as I was about to speak, the dryer went off. "I better get my clothes.." I let go of her hand and got up.

"You never answered my question." she tightly gripped the arm of the couch, preparing herself for the worst.

"Despite the rager and my half nude fiasco….We're still together." I assured. A small sigh of relief escaped her before she could stop herself.

After I changed into my clothes I went back into the living room to offer her some assistance cleaning up. I was met by two Advil resting in her palm and a glass of water in her other hand. "Take this.." she set the pills in my hand.

"Thanks" I tossed them into my mouth and drank the water. "What can I do to help clean up?"

"You don't have to help." she still sounded slightly irritated. "Go home and sleep off your hangover."

"You're still upset." I noted. "Why?" She ignored my question completely and began rearranging the cushions on the couch. I grabbed both of her wrists and forced her to look at me. "What's wrong?" I took a softer approach and my hands released her wrists, traveling to her shoulders. "Please don't shut me out."

"Last night you said something else.." she shrugged my hands off. "You said that this" she pointed back and forth "_us_ is a mistake."

"I don't feel that way at all Helga." I stepped forward so our faces were just a few inches apart. "The only mistake I've made so far is not trusting you to throw me a birthday party. You've been amazing to me… and you prove how much you care more and more every day. It would be a _huge _mistake to let you go… Helga… I-.. I _really_ like you."

"Well.. I guess I kinda like you too." she grinned.

"Great" I returned her grin.

"Fantastic."

"Superb" I agreed.

"…. So are we going to make out now?"

"Of course."

I definitely know the cure for a hangover now.

* * *

_**(**Two Months Later**)- **_**December**

My room looked like Christmas had thrown up everywhere. Ribbons, wrapping paper, and name cards were scattered all over the floor. Helga was making ribbon curls to decorate the presents for the borders and I was taping the wrapping paper on the boxes. We had created a little assembly line on the floor. Helga had decided instead of listening to Bing Crosby's Christmas CD in silence, we should swap stories. It was another one of her attempts to broaden our knowledge of each others pasts, and divulge where we're going with our futures.

"So let me get this straight… after all of your scheming, you wound up in the closet with _Nadine_? That's priceless football head. Was she any good?" Helga let out a roar of laughter, she was having too much fun mocking my story about Sids thirteenth birthday party '7 minutes in heaven' incident...

"I had never really kissed a girl longer than a few seconds before. It was… awkward. Her hands were everywhere.. And she _bit_ my neck! I couldn't look at her again for weeks. But what sucks is Lila ended up in that same closet with _Harold_… I had never been so pissed off in my whole life." I smirked at the memory. That was probably the one and only time I was ever jealous of Harold. "Okay miss giggles a lot… now you tell me about your first steamy kiss, and don't you dare hold back!"

She gave me a look that said '_I'll kill you_', but she contemplated the question a moment before answering. "Well.. My first _steamy_ kiss was with…" she paused.

"Come on! I shared with you.."

"It was with Wolfgang! Okay? I didn't really swap spit with too many boys in my youth… in case you forgot, they were all afraid of me." a tinge of red filled her cheeks. "Go ahead and laugh."

"Helga." I took the ribbon out of her hand. "You have absolutely nothing to be ashamed or embarrassed of. The fact that you didn't just kiss _anyone _speaks volumes about you. I think it's sweet.." she scooted over until our shoulders were touching, I took it as a signal and wrapped my arm around her, her head leaned against mine nuzzling me slightly.

"As lame as this sounds… I always wanted you to be my first _real_ kiss. You were my first technical kiss.. But it was completely innocent, not to mention unreciprocated. I had dreamt of the moment you would take me in your arms and kiss me until I was blue in the face. You would smile and say it was perfect, and I would tell you that I could never kiss someone else the same way I kissed you for as long as I live." though her face wasn't visible at that moment, I knew her blush had intensified. "I told you it was lame.." she chuckled softly.

I turned my head until I could see her profile. "It doesn't sound lame to me… there's nothing wrong with those feelings. Just because you kissed Wolfgang back then, it doesn't mean you missed out on your special kiss…. Don't you remember the Halloween party last year? I kissed you, and at the time I didn't realize it but I was craving physical contact with you.. I subconsciously wanted the kind of kiss that only you could give me. Helga, no matter who we've kissed in the past nothing can compare to the energy we feel when we're together. As far as I'm concerned, _you_ were the person I shared my first special kiss with." Her lack of a response was unsettling. "You okay?" I kissed the top of her head and nudged her.

"I don't think you realize the effect your words have on me sometimes." we separated for a brief moment only for her to move on to my lap. "Next question… How often do you do _'it'_?" her grin spread clear across her face.

"It?" I scrunched my face up. "What do you mean by _it_?"

"You know? How often do you be your own best friend? Yank your plank? Unload the gun? Play five finger shuffle? Have a date night with _Palm_ela?" at the realization of her question I could only stare at her incredulously with my mouth hanging open.

"I can't believe you'd ask me that! Who would _want_ to know that information?" I felt slightly uncomfortable that she'd ask that question while sitting just above the subject in question.

"I'm just curious.." she batted her eyelashes. "Is it that often or what? Do you do it the moment you're alone?"

"NO!" I got defensive before I realized I was just feeding into her curiosity.. Now the questions were never going to stop. "It's kind of a personal question, don't you think?"

"This just gives you an excuse to ask me something embarrassing."

"The point of these questions isn't to humiliate each other… we're supposed to be getting to know each other better." she pushed my shoulders and caused me to fall on my back and she came following in suite.

"_How often_?" she put all of her weight on top of me, pressing us completely together.

"Not as often as you're probably imagining." I smirked. "So my question is-"

"No way mister!" she sat up and straddled my waist. "I want a number!"

Was this something girls liked asking their boyfriends about? Was it supposed to be common knowledge between partners about our sexual needs? I had a feeling this was about more than what she was asking. "Why is this bothering you so much?" my eyebrow raised.

"I just want to know.." she shrugged. "We haven't exactly _done_ anything yet… and you may be bored or whatever."

I couldn't resist sitting up and kissing her. I thought it was kind of cute how she was concerned for _my_ needs, as if I was having an issue about the lack of sexual relations between us. She pulled away from the kiss and looked at me with uncertainty.

"Once every other week at the _most_" I looked away, embarrassed beyond all belief. I don't even like _thinking_ about it, let alone _talking_ about it.

"_That's it_?" she laughed. "Oh man… where's your libido hiding football head? This is concerning information! Most guys your age goose the gherkin the second they're alone! Sometimes that doesn't even stop them!" she doubled over with laughter and fell off my lap.

"…. _Four times a week_" I grumbled under my breath, embarrassingly defeated. I should have just kept lying..

Her laughter ceased. "I knew it!" she sat up. "You _do_ think about sex!"

"Can we _please_ talk about something else now? _PLEASE_?" my face had become a bright cherry red.

She had a look in her eye that I've never seen before. "We don't need to talk." she grinned. The only other person I had seen with that look before was Rhonda.. And she wanted to-… _holy.._

"Helga.." I moved away from her slightly. "Are you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?"

"You tell me." she gazed at me through half lidded eyes.

"We're not having sex." I picked up a present. "Wrapping presents and sex don't mix! There's scissors laying around!" even I had to roll my eyes at my own deduction.

"I didn't say anything about sex football head." she smacked the present out of my hand, sending it flying across the room.

"Oh come on… don't get mad" I pressed our lips together. "If we have sex someday, it'll be special. Not on my bedroom floor surrounded by Christmas presents and listening to 'Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer'..."

"Dude! I honestly wasn't suggesting we do the deed you dimwit! I just wanted to…. fool around a bit." her suggestive gaze returned. "That's only if you're interested."

Oh geez. I really didn't know how to respond to that. What exactly got her _in the mood_? Nothing about this atmosphere screams romantic.

"Helga.. I don't know.." I rubbed the back of my neck and looked at the ground. "We really haven't discussed this, and I-" in the blink of an eye she had me pinned on the floor again and was hovering above me.

"Not every moment in life needs to be scripted and analyzed to death hair boy… it's a matter of do you _want_ to?"

"What I _want_… is to know you better." I overpowered her grip on my wrists and pushed myself up. "We can't force the stuff that's supposed to come naturally… when our moment comes, we'll know. But until that day.." I wrapped my arms around her waist. "we should focus on _this_… the stuff that happens in between.. That's what falling in love is all about."

She let out dejected sigh and got up. "Fine, we'll keep in PG for now... But don't come crying to me when you get carpal tunnel syndrome from increasing your special 'you' time to _ten_ times a week." She picked her things up off the floor and left with a huff.

I called out to her to no avail, she was already gone. Why didn't I just _try _and go along with it? Why did I resist it so much? Sometimes I really hated being a nice guy.

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A few days after Christmas the gang decided to meet up in the park for a snow day. While the others were sledding down the hill, Gerald and I plopped down on a park bench so I could finally discuss my latest romantic blunder. Gerald found my situation extremely humorous. He was practically rolling on the floor laughing in hysterics when I explained what happened the other night while Helga and I were wrapping presents...

"You know you're an idiot, right?" he wiped a laughter induced tear from his eye. "Helga was _offering_ it man! You don't pass that up! Most guys have to beg for it, let alone actually receive it!"

"I don't think hopping in the sack at the first opportunity is very chivalrous. Girls like _some_ romance when it comes to sex. Despite Helgas insistence, I know she'll appreciate the fact I never forced her into doing something we'll regret."

"You're going to regret being a virgin for the rest of your life!" he cackled.

I rolled my eyes and waved his remark off. Now not only did Helga have sex on the brain, Gerald was going to be breathing down my neck about it. What is with all this pressure? When did sex become a requirement in relationships? Sure, I see myself doing it eventually… but what is all the rush for? It's like people have stopped realizing the importance of the first time, the meaning behind it..

"Helga said she's willing to wait. But don't get me wrong, I _want_ to with her someday.. But there's an element missing."

"The fact that she may not be a virgin too?" he inquired.

"_No_.." I glared at him. "I always thought your first time was supposed to be with someone you're deeply in love with."

"So you're saying you aren't in love with her?" he scraped some snow off the ground and tossed it mindlessly.

"I care about her _a lot_… She's important to me. But I've never told a girl I loved her before, and I'm not entirely sure if I've ever _really _been in love. I think no matter how long you've known someone it doesn't mean you know everything that makes them tick. I think that's what love is… knowing someone inside and out. Helga is still kind of like a mystery to me. I want to know all I can possibly know."

"It's official.. My best friend is a girl." he managed to duck just in time before my snowball flew past his head.

"Hey _ladies_!" Harold chucked a snowball at each of us. "If you're done having your girl talk, we want to get a snowball fight going. You both got recruited on the _girl_ team!" he laughed obnoxiously.

"Did Helga finally show up?" I brushed some snow out of my hair.

"Phoebe said she was busy." he rolled his eyes. "Now can we play?"

That isn't like Helga… she said she was coming for our group snow day. We had discussed it just a few hours ago on the phone. Helga wouldn't pass up the chance to hit people in the face and have no consequences. I dug my cell phone out of my pocket and checked for any missed calls. There wasn't any… I dialed her number and it went straight to voicemail.

"I can't get Helga on the phone." I stopped dead in my tracks. "I'm going to go by her place and see if she's okay. You guys play without me.."

"Dude, you're whipped." Gerald pat my back and sighed. "But good luck finding her. If you find her soon make sure and come back. We need to kick the fat boys ass."

"Hey!" Harold growled. "Shut up or I'll pound ya!"

"You couldn't move your fat ass fast enough to catch me! So shut your mouth you damn honey ham." Harold stalked away angrily, flipping both of us the bird. "Anyway… I'm going to go whoop his ass. If I don't see you later I'll call you. Later my man" we did our signature handshake.

I pulled up in front of Helgas place and looked for any sign of life. The hummer was parked in front of the house and the curtains inside were open, someone was definitely home. I decided to try her cell one more time just in case, it went straight to voicemail once again. I knocked on the front door and waited, Big Bob answered with a big scowl on his face.

"What do you want Alfred?" he growled.

"It's _Arnold_.. And I was looking for Helga. Is she home?"

"She left hours ago! Now get lost, I'm watching the wheel."

"Thanks for your hel-" the door slammed in my face "Help.." I muttered.

If she had left hours ago then why didn't she show up at the park? Unsettling thoughts starting coming to mind… what if she was hurt? Or kidnapped? I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if something had happened to her and I wasn't there to help. I suddenly became frantic.. I had to find her. I drove to Slausens and asked everyone if they had seen her, everyone I had asked had a clue where she was.

"She was getting coffee at Dolly's." Iggy took a sip of his hot chocolate. "I saw her on my way here."

"How long ago? Is she okay?" I flew over to his table and grabbed him by his collar.

"She looked fine to me." he pushed me away from him. "Take a chill pill dude!"

"Thanks Iggy!" I shouted, racing out the door. Dolly's was just a few blocks away so I walked there instead of driving. When the building came in view I picked up my pace. A huge wave of relief washed over me when I saw her sitting in a booth by the window, sipping on a cup of coffee. My joy was soon cut short when I saw someone else sitting across from her and grabbing her hand.

"_Wolfgang?.._" I gasped.

Oh no.. this cant be good.

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**Yay! I actually got another chapter out pretty quickly (for me anyway) lol. I hope you all enjoyed it. The next chapter will be about New years eve.. And Wolfgang. (hehe) I've got a busy schedule the next few days but I'll try working on it during whatever free time I get.**

**Thanks for reading! And remember: reviewing= L.O.V.E.**


	15. Testosterone boys will be boys

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold**

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_**(**Two Hours Earlier**)**_

**Helgas POV:**

It was times like this that I really hated being the newspaper editor. Over winter break Ms. Tyler forced me to write an article and proof read several others before we went to print at the beginning of the next semester, that mixed with college applications was a recipe for a very hectic winter break. I couldn't think of a proper ending for my article on the upcoming Senior mentor program and I had been stuck on it for over an hour. The gang was planning a snow day today and I already knew I was running late, which was adding to my frustration. If I sat there at my desk any longer I thought my brain was going to explode. Enough was enough. I packed away the papers that had been scattered over my desk and put them away for later. Earlier that morning I had gotten my winter gear out in anticipation of our upcoming epic snowball fight, I even busted out my war paint for our faces. I _lived_ for this type of thing. When I finished tying up my snow boots I grabbed my gloves and war paint and went downstairs.

"BABY SISTER! Where are you going? I made lunch!" Olga, who was home for the holidays, bolted in front of the door before I could open it. "I know you've been working hard up there on your little newspaper, you haven't eaten all day!" she began ushering me into the dining room.

"_Little_ newspaper?" I growled. "Look _Olga_ I don't have time for this, I'm running late as it is. I'll grab something at Dolly's on my way."

"B-but" her eyes began watering… big surprise. "…. I made goulash! You don't want to eat with your family who loves you?"

Is that was she considers love? And Olga is supposed to be the smart one…

"Oh suck it up ya wuss. I'll be back later." I closed the front door behind me to the sound of Olgas incessant sobbing and squawking like a wounded piglet. It was pretty much par for the course when Olga was visiting. Since Big Bob had forgotten to put the snow chains on the cars I was forced to walk to Dolly's. About halfway there my phone began going off in my pocket. It was Phoebe..

"House of Hell and Misery. Helga speaking." I smirked.

"_Helga, where are you? You're nearly two hours late._" she didn't even play into my joke.. _Prude_.

"I don't have much time to talk Phoebs, my phone is about to die. I'll hopefully be along soon. I'm stopping to get something to eat and then I'll come by if time permits.." I muttered a goodbye into the receiver before closing my phone and stuffing it back into my pocket. A fresh coating of snow began falling from above and covered the ground beneath me. Several neighborhood kids were outside with their friends and tossing snowballs back and forth, some were making snow angels or sledding. There was something about simple childhood pleasures that seemed so special. Everything was so simple and fun (for most kids anyway).. I basically didn't have a childhood. I've been taking care of myself since I was old enough to walk and talk. It was always around this time of year that my home situation depressed me more than usual.. Seeing everyone and their families so happy and united reminds me of what awaits me when I get home, which is basically an incapacitated mother and a blowhard nitwit for a father and an overly emotional dipstick for a sister. I know I'm lucky to have a family at all, and a roof over my head… but their lack of a connection to me has always put me in turmoil. The only positive thing they've done for me is give me life.

When I got to Dolly's I ordered a cup of coffee and a chocolate glazed doughnut. There wasn't much of a rush at Dolly's this time a day, it was only open for another hour and a half. There was maybe three people in the joint. Instead of juggling the coffee and doughnut on my walk to the park I decided to stay and eat at Dolly's. I'd rather stay in the warmth while I can. I sat down in a booth by the window and doctored my coffee until it was drinkable, adding several packets of sugar and a few things of creamer. For strange reasons unknown, I felt like someone was watching me. I casually looked over my shoulder at the fellow patrons but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. When I turned back around someone was sitting in the seat across from me.

"Crimeny!" I screeched. "What the hell?"

"Still feisty I see." he chuckled.

When my heartbeat returned to normal and my rage lessened I finally processed who it was. "Wolfgang? What are you doing here?" I shot out of my seat to give him a hug which he gladly accepted.

"I sent you an email a while back telling you I was coming to town for the holidays, but you didn't reply. It was pure luck running into you here!" I returned to my seat and studied him. He had changed a little bit since the last time I had seen him, he was still the same height but his weight had shifted more towards his arms… college football must be treating him well. He had also grown some facial hair and his sandy blonde hair had grown out some. "How have you been?" he offered a friendly smile… his fresh attitude made it feel like I was talking to a completely different Wolfgang.

"I've been great. It's just been hectic around here, I didn't mean to ignore your email. There's the school paper, college applications, Arn-" I stopped mid sentence. He didn't know I was dating Arnold, it was going to make him blow a gasket after everything we had gone through before. "I've just been busy." I concluded, flustered. "How's college? Do you like San Diego so far?"

"It's been going pretty good. My classes are alright and the football program is working out well. I'm having the time of my life!" he looked genuinely excited. "You'd love San Diego State, its great. There's so much to do and see, and so many interesting people."

When we had gone on the campus tour the summer before, we went to San Diego State and agreed it was a pretty nice school. His number one choice at the time was UCLA, but at the last minute San Diego State offered him something better and that's where he ended up. I was actually happy that he was enjoying his time there, he was living out a big part of his dream.

"When are you heading back to California?" I continued to stir my coffee relentlessly. My awkwardness was more than apparent. He was obviously trying to figure out why I was so wigged out.

"On Wednesday morning next week.." he paused. "Helga, do you want me to go? You seem a little freaked."

"No!" I said a little too quickly. "I just… I don't know. We haven't seen each other in a long time. I'm not sure how I should act."

_Not to mention you don't know I'm dating the boy you hate._

"We're friends.. Right? Isn't that what you wanted?" he set his elbows on the table and continued to watch me.

"I do want to be friends. We _are_ friends… I'm just on edge I guess. I'll get past it." I took a deep breath and exhaled. "So tell me about college life! Give me an idea of what to expect in my near future."

"Well.. It's not like how they portray it in movies. Sure, there's parties and stuff but it's not as exciting as it seems. There's plenty of frats and sororities everywhere… as for the experience in general, I guess its pretty subjective. It depends on the person.. I've been having a pretty decent time. I think every freshman experiences homesickness at some time.. And that's why I'm here."

"Home is where the heart is." I nodded. "I get it.. So how was your visit with your family? Were they happy to see you?"

"Of course!" he laughed. "My mom hugged me for half an hour and kept saying I was too skinny. She spent nearly three days stuffing food down my throat. All my dad wanted to know was if I was getting any play time during the games."

"Sounds like a good time." I smirked. "I'm surprised you didn't come by my house or something sooner. Big Bob would have jumped for joy. He asks about you every once in a while."

"I'll have to stop by before I go back to California." when I looked away awkwardly he reached over and put his hand on top of mine. It took every ounce of self control to not pull away and scream. "I know you're feeling weird about being around me… to be honest, I feel the same. The fact that we used to date is like adding another layer of awkward. I don't want us to feel weird, I really don't. You're important to me." the look in his eyes sent a pang of guilt straight to my heart.

"You want to be my friend… no matter what?"

"Of course." he nodded.

"Even if we start dating other people?"

He looked uncertain for a moment. "It would be hard at first, but it's something that needs to be accepted. We're both going to start dating eventually.."

"You haven't dated anyone since our break up?" my voice cracked slightly.

"Nope.. I just needed time to get over you. Our relationship was the most serious I had ever been with a girl. It changed me." at that point all color had drained from my face. I seriously thought I was going to throw up. His face hardened slightly "Why?… Helga, have you been seeing anyone?"

"Well.. it's a long story. You see I-" my awkward confession was cut short when Arnold entered Dolly's. His eyes narrowed at the sight of Wolfgangs hand on mine. "Arnold?" I sat there, dumbfounded. I shook my head vigorously and removed my hand from underneath Wolfgangs.

"Hey Helga." he said a little too casually. "I've been trying to get you on the phone. Is everything okay? We were all waiting for you."

"Why hello to you too Arnold." Wolfgang laughed.

"_Wolfgang_.. I see you're home for the holidays." he walked over to the foot of our table. "…reconnecting with Helga." though I wasn't looking up at him, I knew he was looking at me. If I didn't know any better I would say Arnold was irritated. "Do you mind if I join you two?"

"Go ahead." Wolfgang pointed to the spot next to him, but Arnold had already plopped down on my side, sitting dangerously close to me and slinging his arm against the backrest so it was directly behind me. Wolfgang took notice of this and raised his eyebrow quizzically. I was wondering if he was going to put two and two together..

"_So why didn't you call me back_?" Arnold leaned in close to my ear. If we had been alone at the table I would be swooning at the blatant display of affection.

"My phone is dead." I held it up and opened it. "See?" I subconsciously felt myself pulling away from his advances.

"I was worried about you. I went by your house and everything." his hand suddenly grabbed my thigh, causing me to squeak in surprise.

I grabbed his hair and tugged it roughly. "_What's your problem?_" I hissed.

"Ouch!" he winced. "I should ask you the same question."

"Did I miss something?" Wolfgang looked at us awkwardly.

"You did." Arnold removed his arm from the backrest and put it around my shoulders. "You missed a lot. Helga and I are dating now... We have been since July."

"Arnold!" I shook him off of me. He looked completely unapologetic. "Wolfgang… I was going to tell you about this… and definitely _not_ like that." I glared over at Arnold.

I waited for any type of response from him, anger, sadness, disappointment… _anything…_ but he just sat there, stoic. "Well.." he cleared his throat. "I'm a little surprised that you moved on so quickly. But I'm not surprised who you moved on to." his eyes fell on Arnold. "If you hurt her in _any_ way.. I'll personally find you and rip your damn football headed face off. Are we clear?"

To my surprise, Arnold showed no fear, he was using a look I had never seen him use before... "You have no jurisdiction here anymore Wolfgang. Helga is my girlfriend now…" his left hand balled up into a tight fist. "…and how about this? If you give me any reason to think you're being even slightly over friendly with her, _I'll_ rip _your _face off. Are we clear?"

Wolfgang scooted out of the booth and gave Arnold and unsettling glare. "In your dreams football face. Save the drama for someone your own size."

When Wolfgang was out the door, the testosterone induced maniac version of Arnold disappeared entirely and was replaced by the same football head I know and love. It was almost like a switch got turned off like magic. He put his arm back around my shoulders and gave them a squeeze. I may be slightly insane for admitting this, but seeing Arnold get angry and territorial _over ME_ was kind of… attractive. I can see how Rhonda was into that sort of thing… though I wouldn't ever admit that to her.

After a few minutes of silence I finally made eye contact with him. "Arnold…There's no need to be jealous of Wolfgang" I leaned into his warm touch. "My heart belongs to you… and _only_ you."

A small scoff escaped his lips "I wasn't jealous of _him_. With guys like Wolfgang if you don't lay down the law, they're likely to push the boundaries. I didn't want him to think you were on the market.. He had his chance already."

"On the market?" I chuckled. "Arnold… you're pretty darn cute sometimes, did you know that?"

"Only sometimes?" he jabbed my ribs with his fingers. A laughing fit ensued for a few moments before he became serious again. "So when is he leaving?"

"Arnold" I sighed. "Why does it bother you so much? He's here visiting his family, _not_ me."

"It doesn't bother me." he removed his arm from around my shoulders and crossed his arms in front of him. "I just don't like him very much."

"That's apparent. You're pouting like a three year old." he rolled his eyes and uncrossed his arms, plastering a fake grin on his face. "That's better." I leaned over and kissed his temple. He turned his head and grabbed my face, plating a long kiss on my lips before releasing me.

"I think we should go back to the park. Harold was practically begging for a beat down today. I know how much you love seeing him cry."

"I _do_ love watching pink boy cry." I smirked. "Lets go.."

* * *

_**(**New Years Eve**)- 11:25pm**_

A cold wind pierces through the warm atmosphere of the bedroom. The lighting is dim and the silence in unsettling. He's staring at me expectantly as if I retained the answer he was longing to hear. Everything seemed to be standing still as we watch each other from opposite ends of the room. Under the glow of the moon, his hair is reflecting a blondish gold and his eyes are gleaming a vivid shade of emerald, I had never been so awestruck in my entire life. This was a moment you read about in a Harlequin novel or witnessed in some contrived love story… this wasn't supposed to be happening to me. And the person across from me definitely wasn't the same person I had come to know after all this time… he had become someone else.

In my state of shock he had taken a few steps forward and continued to watch me through half lidded eyes, waiting for my response. When he stood in front of me he took each of my hands and set them at the buttons of his shirt, undoing the top one and insinuating I continue the same path. Never in my life had I been so confused, I didn't know what we were doing here or why he wanted his clothing to come off. He cupped the side of my face with his palm and gazed at me lovingly with a smile etched across his face. In our close proximity I could study his eyes and finally see the terror behind them… he was just as afraid as I was. I lowered my hands to the next button and slowly undid it, kissing the small amount of his chest that became exposed. He visibly shuddered and held on to my waist for dear life. His fingers dug into the fabric of my shirt and began lifting it inch by inch exposing part of my midriff so his fingers could rake across it attentively. I undid the final button of his shirt and slowly revealed one of his shoulders, kissing it and doing the same with the other before dropping the garment at our feet. By then both of us were trembling slightly and holding tightly to one another. The uncertainty of where this was leading us was overwhelming. His hands rested underneath the fabric of my shirt at the small of my back, and my hands rested against his white cotton tank top. Both of our feet began subconsciously moving towards the bed and paused at the foot before toppling over in a tangle of limbs. He nestled himself on top of me and began fumbling with the hem of my shirt, grunting angrily when he was unsuccessful. I assisted him, lifting it over my head and exposing even more flesh than either of us ever had before. His eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. There was something about this moment that didn't register correctly in my mind, there was something missing… _why_ were we doing this? And more importantly.. _what_ were we doing?

"_Arnold.._" I caressed the side of his face. "_What's going on? What are we doing?_"

His hand traced the left side of my body before resting at my hip. He looked almost hypnotized. He stared a moment longer before meeting my gaze with a gleam of something foreign in his eyes. "_I'm ready Helga…if you still want to..._" he leaned in just a little further, brushing my hair away from my neck and placing a kiss there. "_I want you.._"

* * *

_**(**Two Hours Earlier**)- 9:00pm**_

**Arnolds POV:**

I dislike Wolfgang, I mean _really_ dislike with a burning passion that shakes me to my core. He's smug, arrogant, and only has eyes for Helga. He doesn't take a hint. During one of me and Helgas mini dates this afternoon we just so happened to run into the Neanderthal in question. We were sharing a cinnamon roll at the food court in the mall when suddenly Mr. 'I-have-huge-muscles-so-I'm-better-than-you' sits at our table and tries to make friendly conversation. For some reason he took my death glares and silence as his cue to carry on a conversation solely with Helga about the new years eve party at Geralds tonight. Not only was I irritated that Gerald invited him, but I was irritated by the way he was watching Helga from across the table. The look in his eyes said everything.. And I didn't like it one bit.

The same situation was playing out again tonight at Geralds. Me and Helga were hanging out with Gerald and Phoebe over by the snack table and having mindless conversation. I wasn't really paying too much attention. My focus was on Wolfgang who was currently working the room with his college tales. Everyone was doe eyed and nodding their heads like a bunch of mindless sheep. What did everyone see in him anyway? Just because he's good at football that makes him a superhero? What bothered me more than anything was Helgas attitude about him, even though he has a misogynistic outlook towards women and has inadvertently stated that a woman's place is in the kitchen, she still thinks the world of him. Just being near Wolfgang made me into an angry beast, he doesn't deserve respect from my girlfriend and he definitely doesn't deserve to be in our lives. Helga says I'm over reacting and that there's nothing to be threatened by, but that's where she's wrong. I'm not 'threatened' by him, I'm _irritated_ when he's around. If anyone else acted the way he does, Helga would hate them instantly and give them a wedgie. Wolfgang gets a free pass because he makes googly eyes at her. He's the one and only person I've ever wanted to punch in the face… _repeatedly._ Gerald was sensing my testosterone induced rage, mainly because of my lack of participation in their conversation. My eyes were burning holes in the back of Wolfgangs skull, daring him to turn around and give me a reason to show him I wasn't kidding around about ripping his face off.

His hand grabbed my shoulder and shook it slightly. "Arnold? Can I have a word with you _elsewhere_?" he nodded towards the kitchen.

"You okay football head?" Helga brushed the back of her hand against my cheek. "You look like you're about to jump out of your skin."

I took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly, releasing the pent up tension. "I'm fine." my hand cupped hers. "I'm going to the kitchen with Gerald for a bit. We'll be back in a few minutes."

"You better hurry back! I want to dance with my boyfriend at some point tonight." her hips gyrated back and forth.

"Dance we shall." I kissed the back of her hand. "Soon milady."

Gerald wasted no time grabbing my arm and dragging me into his parents kitchen. Timberly was sitting on the counter with her legs wrapped around some guys waist and their lips were attached. Gerald went into big brother mode and yelled a long stream of obscenities at the gentleman whom she was exchanging saliva with. I looked on in amusement as the brother and sister yelled back and forth about what is appropriate for a little sister to be doing with someone of the opposite sex. It almost made me glad I was an only child, but it didn't make me forget why Gerald dragged me in here. When the two stopped arguing and Timberly exited the kitchen Gerald regained his composure and focused on me once again.

"_Future whore in the making I swear_" he hissed under his breath. "Anyway… what is your problem tonight Arnold?"

"I honestly don't know if I can explain it." I sighed, feeling just as confused as ever.

"This obviously has to do with a certain ex boyfriend in the next room. So why don't you just tell me what's going through your head? Did he make a pass at Helga or something?" he pulled out one of the kitchen table chairs and sat down, pointing to the one next to him.

"As far as I know he hasn't done anything… but I don't trust him Gerald… I don't trust him at all." I took a seat in the chair next to him. "I don't think he's over her.."

"Did _he_ say that? Or are you just assuming?" he leaned his elbows against the table and rubbed his chin.

"Are you insinuating that I'm _jealous_?"

"Who said anything about jealousy?" he smirked. "I was going to say you're being slightly paranoid about this. Girls don't dig insecurity… it makes _us_ look girly."

"Would _YOU _trust Wolfgang if he was Phoebe's ex?" I raised my eyebrow.

"Luckily for me, Phoebe doesn't have any exes." he grinned proudly.

"Hypothetically Gerald.. Would you be paranoid?"

"Fuck yeah!" he scoffed. "Wolfgang is a beast, we're merely bunnies in the forest compared to him."

"This isn't helping Gerald." my head fell back and I let out a agonizing groan. "I seriously just want Wolfgang to back off… and I want Helga to realize there's nothing worth holding on to with him. I should be the guy in her life! Not that scumbag."

"What would prove that to her?"

"Apparently something I'm not doing-" I paused. "_Not doing.._" my words came out as a whisper. "Gerald! That's it!" I shot up from the chair and began pacing back and forth. "Helga doesn't know if things between me and her are getting serious. She's been forthcoming about what she wants… and I haven't exactly been providing it."

"Wait wait wait wait _wait!_" he held his hands up. "Are you talking about what I _think_ you're talking about? You and Helga _still _haven't done anything yet?"

I looked down and my shoes and nodded. "I just didn't want to do anything without thinking things through.. I want it to _mean_ something."

"And you think it'll be special tonight? At a house party? MY house party? Arnold… I hate to say this, but you're logic is way off on this one. If you two have been waiting for something special, then this isn't it."

"She doesn't want to wait! She's more than hinted on several occasions that she's ready for us to take things further. Maybe my rejection is driving her away?"

"YOU AREN'T DRIVING HER AWAY!" his voice practically rattled the walls. "Helga is one hundred percent devoted to you! Do you even see the way she looks at you when she thinks you aren't looking? That girl would do anything for you my man.. You're letting Wolfgangs presence cloud your judgment. This isn't the answer to your problems. You gotta believe me on this one."

"So I should just sit back and let Wolfgang swoop in?" I huffed.

"How has he swooped in? All he's done is come back to Hillwood to visit his family and friends. Helga is his _friend_!"

"_Ex girlfriend_!" I noted.

"Look.. let's just go back out to the party and lay low for the night. Helga wants to dance with her _boyfriend_ and have a good time. We can bring in the new year in peace… and share a kiss with our honeys." his elbow playfully jabbed my ribs.

I gave up trying to make sense of my frustrations and followed Gerald back into the party. Most of our classmates were gathered in the living room and dancing to some upbeat pop song. What caught my eye first was that Phoebe was currently standing all by herself.

My paranoia kicked into overdrive again "Where's Helga?" I joined her before scanning the crowd.

"She had to… step out for a moment." she took refuge behind Gerald in case I snapped.

"Where's Wolfgang?" I ran my hand through my hair and tugged on the end. He wasn't in the room anymore… anyone could put two and two together.

"What did we just talk about man? Cool out. I'm sure she's fine." Gerald placed a reassuring hand on my back. "You gotta calm down. You're not acting like yourself."

The sound of Helgas infectious laughter came from behind us, followed by a deep baritone laugh. I didn't need to turn around and look at them… I knew they were hanging out together… _alone_. For the first time since Wolfgang came back to town, I didn't snap into some rage induced frenzy. I looked over at Gerald and gave him a defeated sigh. There was no point in making a scene this time.

"Hey Helga-" I plastered on the most genuine smile I could muster before turning around to greet them. Either my eyes were seeing things, or I was right all along. Helga was leaning against the wall and Wolfgang had one arm leaning next to her.. His face much too close to hers. They looked deeply engaged in whatever conversation they were having.

"Arnold.." Gerald warned. "Count to ten or something. Take a deep breath!"

I took in a ragged deep breath and exhaled sharply. "One… two… ten." my hands balled into fists.

"If you go over there and make a scene it's only going to make _you_ look like a fool. She'll get mad! You need to talk to her rationally about this.."

"I'm afraid I agree with Gerald. If you really have a problem with Wolfgang being involved in Helgas life then you should discuss it with her."

Whatever was going on with me felt so foreign and strange. There was something about Wolfgang that set me off in ways that nobody ever had before. The more I thought about him spending time with Helga, the angrier I become. I didn't like feeling like this, it was like a monster had taken over my body and made me act like this territorial meat head. I was acting like the kind of guy I hated…. A guy like _Wolfgang_. So why couldn't I control this feeling?… whatever it was. It was taking over me.

I casually walked over to where Helga and Wolfgang were conversing and waited for them to notice me. Helga was first to meet my gaze "Hey Arnold" she grinned. "You ready for that dance yet?"

"Actually…" I reached for her hand. "I was wondering if we could talk… _privately._" Wolfgang and I exchanged unpleasant glares.

"Whatever" he rolled his eyes. "See you later Helga?"

"Sure thing." she smirked. We both watched him rejoin the party. She turned her attention back on me when he was out of sight. "So what did you want to talk about Arnold?"

I was a little lost at how to approach the situation. I've never really done something like this before. My arm snaked around her waist and pulled her closer to me. She looked slightly confused at the sudden close contact. Taking my cue from romantic movies, I brushed some of her stray hairs behind her ear and whispered "_Do you want to go upstairs?_"

"Sure." she nodded. From her reaction I don't think she knew what exactly I was requesting.

We had to walk through the party in order to get to the stairs, Gerald and Phoebe stared at me with disapproving eyes. They knew exactly where we were going, they were less sure why. And frankly? I felt the same way. We remained hand in hand until we broke into Jamie O's old room. She made her way to the bed and plopped down unceremoniously. I took a moment to regain my composure, keeping myself stationed at the door.

_I'm doing the right thing. I'm doing the right thing. I'm doing the right-_

"So did you bring the cards? You wanted to play right?" she stood up off the bed and watched me curiously. "You okay?"

_Don't blow this Arnold… just act natural._

Forgetting about my sweating palms and shaking knees, I used the door to prop myself up and gaze at her as seductively as I could. It was only then that I realized I had no clue how to _be_ seductive… "We didn't come up here to play cards." I bit my lip nervously. "Do you still want to… you know? _Have sex_?"

She looked completely flabbergasted at my words. I myself couldn't believe I just said that. I was probably redder than her. We stood there in complete silence and continued to watch each other. In the dim setting of the bedroom I couldn't read her facial expression as clearly as I would like, was she going to say no after all of her thinly veiled requests? Maybe she could read past my uncertainty. I didn't know what she was thinking.. I decided to bite the bullet and make the first move, I walked towards her. She stood there completely frozen…watching every step I made. My face expressed a sense of calm by the time I was standing in front of her. Keeping my hands as steady as I could, I grabbed her hands and brought them to my shirt, unbuttoning the top button. In an attempt to keep myself grounded I reached up and cupped her face, smiling softly and staring into her eyes. Something inside her must have registered, her hands lowered to the next button and undid it, placing a kiss against my skin. I practically jumped at the contact but held on to her so I wouldn't chicken out and run away.

_What would they do in the movies?_

My fingers began pulling at the fabric of her shirt and lifting it up just enough for my fingers to graze across her lower back and stomach. Part of my shoulder became exposed and her lips pressed into it softly before repeating the process on the other one. The sound of fabric and buttons hitting the hardwood floor soon followed. She was completely pressed against me, I could feel her heartbeat thumping just as wildly as mine. There was no way I could go back now. Before I could think about anything else we stumbled our way to the bed, falling rather ungracefully with a thud. I attempted taking off her shirt, my efforts were in a word: pathetic. She removed my hands and did it herself, exposing a black satin bra. My eyes were practically falling out of their sockets at the sight of something so intimate. We had never gone this far before..

"_Arnold.._" her hand softly touched the side of my face. "_What's going on? What are we doing?_"

The hormonal teenage boy in me couldn't help but stare at her body a moment longer before I met her gaze. "_I'm ready Helga…if you still want to..._" I took another cue from romantic movies and kissed her neck before going in for (hopefully) the final kill. "_I want you.._" which honestly wasn't a lie at all. The thought of having sex with an attractive female sounded fantastic at the moment. Everything was the picture perfect image… sort of.

"_What changed your mind_?" she got a look of deep concern in her eyes.

"_I've always wanted you Helga._" I chuckled. "_I don't want to hold back anymore._"

I could tell she was weighing her options in her mind. There was a feeling the pit of my stomach telling me she could see right through me. It was one of the cons of dating someone who knew me so well. There was no fooling Helga G. Pataki. She nudged me off of her so she could sit up, breaking whatever sexual haze we were once in.

"You told me before that you wanted sex between us to be special. You wanted true love." she almost looked pained. "Are you saying you love me Arnold?"

My intentions came to a screeching halt. "Well… um- I… uh.."

"Why are we up here?" she reached over the side of the bed and grabbed her shirt, slipping it back on. "I'm only going to ask you this one more time…. Has this all been about Wolfgang? Are you threatened by him?"

"Helga-"

"Arnold." she gave me a 'don't you dare' look. "You've been acting like the complete opposite of yourself. You're possessive and neurotic, insecure and untrusting… why? What else would make you turn into this… this… _thing!_"

"I don't like Wolfgang." I stated simply.

"Its more than that." she narrowed her eyes. "You were never fond of him when we were kids, but THIS is different… he has you completely off your rocker. There's something about him that makes you snap."

"I DON'T LIKE HIM!" I growled. "I want him out of my life!"

"But Arnold, he's part of _my_ life. You have to accept that."

"And that's my problem! He has no respect for _me_ being in your life. He expects you to fall into his mantrap whenever he's in town… just like everyone else. But I don't care about anyone else! I care about _you_! You're my girlfriend! He had his chance with you before… you belong with someone who respects you, someone who wants to see the world with you and see you live out your dreams and well as live out their own. I want to be that guy Helga… but I'm afraid he'll… change your mind." I took a deep breath and covered my eyes. "I'm very threatened by him, okay? I admit it."

She remained uncharacteristically quiet. I uncovered my eyes to see that she had tears forming in her eyes. "Arnold." she sniffed. "There's nothing for you to worry about. Wolfgang is a part of my past… you're the one I go to bed thinking about and you're the first person I think of when I wake up. I love listening to you laugh at my corny jokes, and the way you smile when I call you 'football head'. I love everything about you… even the insecure little boy that you keep hidden inside. Seeing your weaknesses makes me fall in love with you even more. I love you so much Arnold… and I know you aren't ready to say it back yet. I would wait for the rest of my life to hear those words, and I'm going to keep waiting patiently. You're worth it.."

"You are probably the most amazing woman I'll ever know.." my hand slipped into hers. "I feel like I'm letting you down by not giving in."

"You aren't letting me down." she leaned over and kissed my cheek. "The wait will be worth it.. I know.. They always say good things come to those that wait."

The crowd downstairs began counting down "_10.….9.….8.….7.…..6_.…" when they reached one I leaned over and kissed Helga for a good thirty seconds.

"Happy new year Helga.."

"Happy new year football head."

As if on cue, I smiled..

* * *

**Long chapter? Yes. Lol… I hope nobody is too disappointed in Arnold. If you stop and think about it, a lot of guys get all touchy when it comes to their girlfriends exes. Arnold was just another victim of the angst. (that poor boy cant catch a break!) but things ended nicely (almost TOO nicely? *wink*) lol.. No, I don't write dirty stuff into my stories! I may be 21, but it doesn't mean I'm comfortable with making this an 'M' story! Hehe… anyway, I'm not really sure if I'll have another chapter out for a little while. I'm going to Las Vegas in 9 days (WOO!) so I don't know if I'll have a FINISHED chapter by then. I promise I'll TRY! **


	16. Running the bases

**Thank you for the amazing reviews on the last chapter! I'm relieved that you guys understood Arnolds reaction to Wolfgang returning. You wouldn't believe how long I debated keeping that in there! (I had two versions of it) lol. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this next chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it ;) this one's special!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold!**

* * *

_**(**Three Months Later**)- March**_

**Arnolds POV:**

"How on earth did I let you convince me to do this?" I stared blankly at the display before me.

"Because you're no fool." Gerald pointed out. "This is important my man. _Very_ important! Now pick one and go for it."

"I don't see the point. You're just trying to influence me huh?" I smirked. "It's all part of your master plan. I wouldn't be surprised if Helga asked you to do this."

"Why on earth would I let Helga convince me to do this? That chick has her own agenda. Now quit stalling man!" he perused the contents of the shelves before grabbing a box and holding it in front of me. "Mmmm mmm. For _her_ pleasure!" he grinned wickedly.

I wasn't even aware of the sour look on my face until he waved his hand in front of my face a few times. "Why are you so sure I'm planning on having sex with Helga?" I smacked the box of Trojans away from my face.

"You keep saying how _special_ her birthday is going to be! Special for Helga is a little different than your definition of special Arnold. Now.." he held the box back up. "are you baking her a cake or getting naked?"

"I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that." I rolled my eyes. "And I can't say what I'm doing for her birthday yet… it really _is_ special."

Helgas approaching birthday had been on my mind for several weeks. In some ways Helga was like me when it came to her birthday, she didn't like a big fuss over her. The only reason she downplayed it is because of her upbringing. Bob and Miriam rarely remembered when her birthday was let alone celebrated it. She's had three birthday parties as long as I've known her. The first one her friends ever attended was her seventh birthday party which was a birthday carnival held at the beeper store parking lot, yes.. You heard me right. The cake was strawberry Funfetti with strawberry icing. '_Happy 5th__ birthday Olga' _was written on it in red letters_. _I honestly don't think they'll ever know her actual age. Anyway, to make a long story short Helga spent the next two days in the hospital suffering from a severe allergic reaction to strawberries. The next party was held on her eleventh birthday (8th according to her duncical parents). Helga had begged for a party at the bowling alley, Bob decided it would be too expensive so instead he bought a cheap toy bowling set and had the party in their backyard. Halfway through the party a heavy rain began, ruining any chances at 'bowling'. Miriam also almost poisoned Helga again with a sobered up version of her infamous strawberry banana smoothie. The party was called off after Helga lost her patience and the will to participate in her parents contrived attempt at a birthday party. Olga was the one who threw Helga a sweet sixteen since her parents obviously thought she was some other random age. The party was going to be held at the community center gymnasium complete with a DJ and a dance floor. The only responsibility given to Miriam and Bob was sending out the invitations to all of Helgas friends. The invitations were sent to all of _Olgas_ friends, and none of the gang. So on Helgas sixteenth birthday she and Olga were met with all of the people in Olgas phone book, and none of us knew she had even had a birthday party that year. After that disaster, Helga never wanted to have her parents throw a party for her again. But that didn't mean _I _couldn't do something for her.

Gerald threw a box of condoms at my left cheek and pointed towards the other boxes. "Are you going to pick one? Or should I do it?" he gave me a 'don't make me, cause you know I will.' look.

"Why are you making me buy condoms? Helga and I haven't discussed… as you say, 'touching home plate' in a long time. Buying condoms will make her think I'm going to jump her or something." I grabbed one of the boxes and read the back of it. "what the heck is this? '_Fire and ice'_? that doesn't sound like fun… that sounds like an STD in the making." I put the box back on the shelf.

"I'm not going to _make_ you do this Arnold. I just don't want you to come crying to me when _she_ jumps _you_ and then you end up with a unibrowed, football headed, bad tempered baby all because you didn't have protection! You get what I'm saying?" I chuckled at the idea of his Franken-baby. "You wont be laughing when she has to push that football shaped head out of her and you end up with a broken hand… and _oh yeah_ an INFANT! Condoms are your friend Arnold. It doesn't hurt you to be prepared."

I picked out another box, one a little less flashy and didn't have the word 'sensual' plastered all over it. "How about these?" I shrugged. "Plain and simple."

His eyes narrowed "You're either being really cheap, or you have no intention of keeping those once I leave your sight."

"I'll keep them in my room. Satisfied?" I seriously wanted to cross my fingers behind my back, but if Gerald _really_ thought I needed them then I would keep them to get him off my back.

"No no no… you keep one in your wallet at _all_ times, and one in the glove box of your car. Then the rest can stay in your room. There's no such thing as being too prepared when it comes to the horizontal tango."

_Dear God.._ did he want me to tape a condom to my forehead too?

"If Helga finds these she's going to start asking questions." I held the box in my palm, not necessarily committed to buying them yet. "I don't want to give her the impression that this means we're doing it for the sake of doing it." _like what almost happened on new years.._

"You two have been dating for how long? 8 months? If you two can't discuss _this_ then I don't know what you two have been doing for 8 months. Keeping condoms shouldn't be this big of an issue. You're turning it into some monumental catastrophic production."

"Wow Gerald... '_Monumental catastrophic production'? _Someone has obviously been studying with Phoebe." I sassed.

"Shut up you nun!" he smirked. "I'm trying to keep a 3.5 GPA so I can get into Florida State so I can be close to Phoebe. Anyway, quit trying to get the attention off of you! Are you buying the damn condoms or not?"

"I'll buy them if you promise to back off of me and Helgas sex life."

"I will when you actually _have _one" I instantly glared at him. "I'm kidding! From now on my lips will be sealed." he imitated a zipper across his lips.

We went to the checkout counter and purchased the condoms. I had never felt more awkward in my entire life. The checkout girl looked back and forth at me and Gerald several times, it took a moment to register what she was probably thinking. My face felt like it was on fire from blushing so hard.

"There, now was that so bad?" Gerald patted my back encouragingly. "Even if you never use them at least you'll know you were always prepared."

I sat down in the passenger seat of Geralds car and took the condoms out of their paper bag and studied them for the hundredth time. "I just feel weird buying these without talking about it with Helga first."

"Quit trying to convince yourself that carrying condoms is wrong! Arnold, you _didn't_ do anything wrong. You're a responsible guy and Helga knows that."

I crumbled up the paper bag and stuffed the box of condoms in my front pocket so grandpa wouldn't question what I bought as soon as I walked in the front door. I wasn't really in the mood to explain why I bought condoms. The last thing I wanted was another speech from grandpa about 'doing it'. I get enough of that from Gerald. When we pulled up in front of the boarding house we said our goodbyes and I went inside so I could call Helga. We had been planning a date night for the past few days. I was also finally going to tell her I wanted to throw her a birthday party in three weeks. When I got inside grandpa and the borders were nowhere in sight so I was able to make a beeline to my room to 'dispose' of my incriminating evidence. I slammed my bedroom door behind me and pulled the condoms out of my pocket… was I _really_ going to keep them? I really should talk to Helga about it first. I did _not_ want her finding them before we discuss it. Before I could think any further my phone began ringing.

"You must have known I was thinking about you." I smirked into the receiver. "I was just getting ready to call you."

"_You were thinking about me football head?_" she chuckled.

"Of course." I was kind of grateful she wasn't present to witness my cheesy grin.

"_So what did you do today?_"

Panic registered in the back of my mind. Did she see me and Gerald at the drugstore or something? Or was she generally interested in what I did today? Why am I overanalyzing this? "I didn't do much really… I saw Gerald for a bit. Nothing exciting. Did you have fun shopping with Olga today?" I had a feeling I already knew her answer before she gave it.

"_She was annoying the hell out of me even more than usual… she kept talking about you and me and how we're 'growing up'… she even offered to take me to the doctor to get on the pill! Can you believe her?" _that was definitely not the answer I was expecting..

"The pill?" I gulped.

"_Crazy right? Anyway, I told her I didn't need the pill. I've been on it for months._"

I didn't mean for the phone to fall out of my hands when those words escaped her mouth. I could faintly hear '_Arnold? ARNOLD?' _coming from the floor. I slowly picked the phone back up and put it to my ear. "You've been on the pill for… _months_? Why didn't you tell me?"

"_It's no big deal Arnold… I know you aren't ready. I just want to be ready for the day you're ready… you know?"_

"I understand. I guess it really isn't a big deal unless we make it one." I let out a small sigh. "So are we still on for our date tonight?"

"_That's kinda why I called.._"

"What's wrong?"

"_Nothing's 'wrong' per se… I was just wondering if we could make it a double?"_

"The last time I attended a double date I ended up in the hospital. Need I remind you of Wolfgangs roid rage?"

"_Look, I doubt Rhonda and Sid are going to put you in the hospital. I was talking with Rhonda earlier today and she thought it'd be fun for us to hang out. We haven't hung out as a group since December! If it'd make you feel better you could invite Gerald and Phoebs along. We can make it a triple!_"

I inwardly groaned at the thought of having to go on a triple date. That wasn't the way I had planned tonight going. I didn't want to sound like a control freak and refuse her from socializing with our friends, but I didn't want to be forced into a triple date. I wanted to be alone with her.

"I kind of wanted to spend some time alone with you.. So we could discuss something important.."

An unsettling silence remained on her end. "_I'll be over in fifteen._" without warning she hung up. She didn't _sound_ angry, but sometimes with Helga you never know. No more than fifteen minutes later Helga was pounding on my bedroom door and bursting into the room. She didn't look angry at all.. "Hey." she grinned.

"Hey." I returned her grin. "You didn't have to come over.. I could have picked you up-" she closed the distance between us and kissed me roughly on the lips before pushing me on to the bed. "I see you aren't interested in small talk today?" I smirked.

She landed on top of me and watched me through half lidded eyes. "What did you want to discuss with me?" I chose to ignore her wandering hands which were currently resting dangerously low on my hips. My hands made their own journey underneath the back of her shirt and rested on her lower back.

"I know we haven't really talked about this for a while.. But I was wondering-"

"YES!" she squealed and began tugging at the hem of my shirt.

"You didn't even hear the whole question!" I chuckled as her fingers tickled part of my stomach.

"I thought you wanted to fool around?" her eyebrow raised quizzically.

"What? What gave you that impression?" I nudged her off of me so I could sit up. "I wanted to talk about your birthday."

She pouted slightly and kicked her legs out. "I like the first option better."

Though I didn't like admitting it, I always wondered if she was like this with Wolfgang while they were dating. I don't think he was the type of guy to say no…

_Stop thinking about it!_

"Helga.. Is there a reason why you're so desperate for intimacy? I mean can you explain it to me? I know you're not this perverted all the time." I pulled her closer so I could wrap my arm around her.

"I dreamt of being with you since I was three years old. Having you hold me just like this" she snuggled further into my shoulder. "You're everything I'm ever going to want. Do you blame me for wanting to be as close to you as humanly possible?"

I don't think Helga realized the kind of pressure that puts on me. To be someone's "dream person" is rather overwhelming. Helga has a mental image of me that not even _I _can measure up to. I want to tell her that I don't deserve to be on this pedestal she's put me on for so long, that I'm just as screwed up as the next person… but I know Helga wont believe it. She sees the best in me, and when faced with my flaws she still manages to find the Arnold she's always loved. She really does love me with every fiber of her being…. its terrifying.

I held her a little tighter and rubbed her shoulder. "Helga despite your constant desire to consummate this relationship… you really are an amazing person. You have this fire inside of you that never seems to die down. Its an admirable quality that I'm lucky enough to see more and more of every day." I angled her chin until she was looking in my eyes. "You deserve everything, you really do." I leaned in and captured my lips with hers for a brief kiss.

She hummed in contentment and rubbed her nose against mine. "If I didn't know any better I'd say you were falling for me football head."

"Maybe.." I smirked. "You had practically fifteen years to figure out your feelings. I've had eight months."

"Will you ever let down your guard and try something different for once? We've spent a lot of time and energy contemplating and avoiding this subject." her fingers tapped impatiently against my thigh, implicating she was still willing to mess around.

Instead of coming up with some sort of witty response I hushed her with another kiss. "If we rush the physical aspect of our relationship before we're both ready, it can tear us apart. I've seen it happen to so many people… and I don't want us to be next. When we finally have sex I want it to mean everything. I know you've been ready for this for who _knows_ how long.." she gave me a slight glare. "… and I'll be ready too… eventually." I assured.

"You're being so _difficult_." she continued to pout, over dramatizing her words.

"View it how you like." I fell on my back and pulled her down with me, nuzzling her cheek with mine. Her bottom lip protruded pathetically. I held her face in my hands and ran my thumbs over her cheek bones. "Trust me Helga.. This isn't easy for me either. I would love nothing more than to follow my impulses and do what my mind is telling me." my arms slowly wrapped around her waist and she laid her head on my chest.

A comfortable silence surrounded us as we both stared at the stars through the skylight. It was moments like this that I knew what I had with Helga was something special. We didn't need words anymore. I couldn't help but let my mind wander to the condoms that were currently in my left pocket. My head told me that I needed to throw them in the nearest trashcan and forget they ever were in my possession, but as for my heart?…. It was telling me something completely different… and _that's _what was scaring me.

Maybe Helga was right. Maybe I really was falling for her..

And that was the scariest thing of them all..

* * *

_**(**Three Weeks Later**)**_

**Helgas POV:**

You would figure that on your birthday you get treated like a prince/princess for the day. In my family its customary to forget and ignore our births. Everyone but Olga of course… her birthday is pretty much a national holiday to Big Bob and Miriam. I can honestly say that birthdays in the Pataki household don't amount to a hill of beans. I've spent a long time convincing myself that there's no need to make a fuss or get excited. That's something a child would do, but come to think of it… I guess I never got to be a kid so I didn't really miss out on much. The only thing I missed out on was attention and affection, luckily for me Arnold was always there to fill that void even if he was unaware of it at the time. He kept me alive, and for that I owe him my complete and utter devotion so long as I am alive and breathing. He was the only person who offered to do something for my 18th birthday. I'll admit I was hesitant after living through my other disastrous birthday parties from my youth, but Arnold wasn't anything like Big Bob and Miriam. He told me to trust him and let him take care of everything, and so I did. I know absolutely nothing about this party he has planned. I had trouble sleeping all night long, mainly because I was feeling anxious at the realization of becoming a legal adult and also the fact that my party was in seventeen hours. I had entrusted my birthday party to my parents as a child and was constantly disappointed, Arnold had me anxious because I knew he wanted this particular birthday to be special.

"_Helga_.." a hand grabbed my sleeping shoulder and shook me softly.

"Go away Miriam." I grumbled, four hours of sleep just wasn't going to cut it. I cracked my eye open and saw Arnold sitting on the side of my bed with a chocolate cupcake in his hand and a candle lit on top of it. "Arnold?" I sat up drowsily.

A huge grin spread across his face and he began singing "Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Helga!" he put the cupcake in front of my face. "Happy birthday to you." he waited anxiously for me to blow the candle out.

I gave him an amused smirk before closing my eyes and blowing out the candle. I plucked the candle from the frosting and licked the bottom of it. "Sweet." he leaned over and set the cupcake on the nightstand, his face was practically a centimeter away from mine. "Thank you." I leaned in the rest of the distance and placed a small kiss on his cheek.

"You're welcome." he gave my hand an affectionate squeeze.

"So how did you get in here? Bob and Miriam are downstairs." I picked up the cupcake and licked some of the frosting.

"Your window was open." he grabbed the hand that was holding the cupcake and brought it to his own mouth, letting his tongue slide across the chocolate frosting. My inner freak couldn't stop looking at his tongue, which he must have taken notice of. "Did you leave it open in case I might show up?" I was kind of grateful that he didn't laugh at me for my fascination with his tongue.

"A girl can dream." I smirked, retracting my hand and reclaiming my cupcake. He gave his best innocent puppy dog eyes and blinked repeatedly. He knew the pathetic face always worked on me, instead of giving back the cupcake I pressed the frosting into the side of his mouth.

"Eww!" he lifted his finger to scrape off the frosting but my hand grabbed his before he could touch it.

"I don't think so football head." I pulled his face in and licked the frosting off in one swoop. When I pulled away he stared at me in awe. He pushed the remainder of the cupcake into my cheek and smashed it into several messy pieces. The sick pervert in me was waiting for him to tackle me and return my previous actions, but instead he grinned victoriously and let out a small chuckle. "Wow football head… you've got guts." I ran my index finger across my cheek and scraped a layer of frosting and smashed cupcake off before sticking it in my mouth. "You do know this means war, right?" before he could answer I pinned him against the bed and began rubbing our faces together, making an even bigger mess than before. In the midst of our laughing and horsing around our lips brushed together a few times but not really intentionally, when both of us were catching our breath from our fit of laughter he sat up and kissed me, almost instantly slipping his tongue in my mouth. His actions caught me off guard to say the least, anytime there was ever French kissing involved I was usually the one to instigate it. I almost didn't know how to react…._almost._ We both started rolling around on the bed and grunting, I hadn't really seen this side of Arnold before in the eight months we had been dating… I had to admit I liked this side.

After several minutes of continuous making out Arnold finally pulled away and sat up. "Well that was…. _messy_" he chuckled, scraping off some of the partially dried frosting. "What a way to kick off the day, right?"

"Was this part of your master plan?" I let my hair loose from their pigtails, grimacing at the amount of chocolate that had accumulated in it.

He glanced over his shoulder and watched me mess with my hair. The look in his eyes captivated me… I could only register it as one thing: Lustful. "Definitely not." he licked the side of his mouth and got some of the chocolate off.

"Well even though it was unplanned, it was…. Enjoyable." I slithered across the bed and placed a kiss on the tip of his nose. "You're really coming out of your shell."

He ran his palm across his cheek and cringed. "I think we'll need a shower before going anywhere today." my eyes widened in excitement. "Helga, even if I decided to feed into your game and offered to jump in the shower with you we both know you wouldn't do it. You like to tease me to see what type of reaction you'll get."

_I have to give the boy credit.. He isn't blind to my tricks.._

"So that means I can't wash your back?" I smirked.

"In due time my sweet. But until then I'll be showering at my place, and then I'll be back to take you out to do the activity of your choice." my mind involuntarily went to inappropriate places. "….that are within the PG-13 limit." his eyes narrowed.

_He really does know me_..

"Just take away all the fun why don't you?" my arms wrapped around him from behind, resting my head on his shoulder.

He leaned into my touch and sighed deeply, bringing his hands over mine. It may be my crazed teenage hormones overreacting but it seemed that Arnold was a lot more physical lately… not that I was complaining. He made it a point to always show his affections with either a simple touch or kissing me. I rarely had to initiate kisses anymore.

"I really should get going.." he sounded almost torn about the decision. "I'll be back soon. Think about what you want to do today." he stood up and pulled me with him.

"I'll be anxiously awaiting your return" I over dramatized with a nasally British accent.

"You're so weird."

"Darn straight chocolate lips!" I grabbed the collar of his shirt and forced his lips to mine. "Now get out of my sight!"

"Yes Ma'am" he saluted.

Since we were being 'playful' I took the opportunity to spank him as he exited my room. Instead of giving me a disapproving glare her swiveled his hips a few times and winked over his shoulder. It took Arnold 8 months, but it seems that his suggestive playful side had finally come out. If I didn't love him there would be no way I could have waited this long. My patience with him wasn't just purely for my own gain, it was a learning experience for both of us. _That's_ how I know our relationship is the real deal. Every relationship is about giving and taking, growing as people… and that's exactly what Arnold and I have been doing since we've been dating. I can honestly say my definition of love has changed since embarking on this adventure, as a child I believed that love was purely the feeling of butterflies in your stomach and a warm comfortable feeling. Love is so much more than a feeling… love is everything. It embodies everything you are, and everything you are to become. Love changes your life, but most importantly it changes _you_. The love I feel for Arnold goes so much further than skin deep, my soul is forever connected with his… it's something that I will keep close to my heart until my last breath.

About an hour later Arnold showed up at my doorstep, his body chocolate free this time. He greeted me with another cupcake to replace the one we destroyed earlier and offered to take me wherever I wanted to do the activity of my choice….. within his silly PG-13 limits. Instead of begging to go to the local make out joint I chose to do the things 18 year olds are legally allowed to do (minus the one activity I had been thinking about for months). I forced him to take me to the gas station so I could buy cigarettes, ones which I had no intention of smoking. It was the principal of it! We spent a good twenty minutes arguing about buying them before he reluctantly agreed as long as we disposed of them before anyone else saw them. He threw a ten dollar bill in my palm and forced me to buy them without his involvement… _prude. _After the gas station incident he immediately took the cigarettes and tossed them in the nearest trashcan, scolding me at the idiocy of smoking 'death sticks' and just buying them was bad enough. With some mouth to mouth persuasion I convinced him to blindly lead us to our next location downtown. It was a small building on the corner of Fifth and Vine called '_Wildcat'_. Arnold remained pretty clueless until we got carded at the entrance of the building before going inside. I told him not to worry and let me do what I was going to do. We went inside and I swear I could hear Arnolds heart fly out of his chest. '_Wildcat_' is an adult bookstore/toy store. He automatically turned a bright shade of red and grabbed my wrist, begging to leave. I shook him off an continued on my mission to the magazine stand. I intended on doing all the ridiculous things that people at the age of 18 are permitted to do, and this was one of them. Buying a dirty magazine at 18 was pretty much a right of passage. I grabbed a magazine specially made for women, Arnold slapped the magazine out of my hand and hissed his disapproval before handing me a magazine with girls in it. I couldn't help but laugh at his obvious disapproval of my eyes seeing another male naked, but yet he had no problem with me looking at _women_?… Boys are sick and slightly deranged creatures. When we paid for the magazine Arnold grabbed my hand and pulled me out of there as fast as his body could move, his cheek color didn't turn back to normal for over fifteen minutes. Our next stop was going to take a lot of convincing on my part, Arnold had practically died during our previous activities because they were 'irrational' in his eyes… so convincing him to let me do something _actually_ fun and exciting was going to be a challenge. While we were eating lunch at Slausens I decided to approach it head on and go from there…

"I want a tattoo." I grinned.

He choked on a sip of his chocolate milkshake, sputtering and coughing for several seconds. "WHAT? No way Helga, I draw the line at tattooing your body." he shook his head and waved his arms around. "Porno and cigarettes are bad enough. Don't you want to go to Dinoland or something? We can even go to the make out spot!"

"The only thing you like doing there is bird watching." I smirked. "Remember last time?"

"That bird was _huge!"_ He defended. "But that's not the point… I'm offering you no inhibitions lip wrestling and you're turning it down?"

"Maybe if you'll let me get to second base.." I walked my index and middle fingers up his torso.

He watched my fingers a moment before meeting my gaze. "Okay." he nodded. "But none of this tattoo business?"

"Third base" my eyes narrowed. If I was going to drop my idea, I wanted to get compensated.

"Not in my car we aren't!" he narrowed his eyes in return.

"Bedroom?"

"HELGA!" he warned.

"What?" I held my hands up innocently. "At least I didn't suggest getting to home plate."

"Second base is my final and _only_ offer."

There was no way in hell I was settling for second base.

* * *

"I can't believe I settled for second base." I panted quietly against Arnolds lips before kissing him again.

"I think you'll enjoy this memory more than some wrinkly tattoo in twenty years." he removed his hand from the inside of my shirt and propped himself up against the door in the backseat. I followed after him and laid against his chest. For the first time since arriving at 'Mount Ecstasy' I glanced at the clock… it was already nearing dinner time.

"So is there a party tonight?" I nuzzled the spot above his heart.

"Party?" he sounded confused. "For what?"

My head shot up to look in his eyes, his face was contorted in an attempt to suppress his laughter. "You jerk!" my fist collided with his gut.

"You'll pay for that Pataki" he grabbed my wrists to prevent any other blows to his stomach.

"Now what macho man? Run out of ideas?" he wrapped his leg around my hip and abruptly switch positions, wedging me against the door. "_I like this idea.._"

"You like getting pinned down against your will?" he put additional pressure on my hips as he leaned closer to my ear. "_I always knew you were a little weird_."

"My question remains football head… what now?" the thought of him completely overpowering me was rather thrilling… Arnold wasn't the type of guy to assert his dominance over a girl. I kind of like being his first..

_Stop it Helga old girl.. Keep yourself in check._

"Now…" his lips grazed my cheek. "We have dinner."

I was slightly confused when we pulled up on front of his house. He said he forgot his gift upstairs and to come inside so he could change his shirt so we could finally meet our friends at the 'secret location'. When he opened the door to the boarding house we were greeted by a stampede of various animals before we could go inside.

"Who turned out the lights?" I growled.

"Grandpa and Granma probably went out… come on." he grabbed my hand and pulled me up the stairs.

"Why do I need to come upstairs and watch you change?" I wondered aloud.

"It'll just take a minute."

We slipped into his nearly pitch black room, the only light inside was coming from the moon. "We need to turn on a light football head!" I reached blindly for a light switch. The lights from the roof turned on suddenly, lighting up the bedroom. Several of our classmates came into view from the skylight screaming "HAPPY BIRTHDAY HELGA!" I gave Arnold a 'you asshole' look, quickly followed by a smile. We crawled up through the window and joined everyone on the roof. To my complete and utter surprise, the party wasn't a disaster. There was food, dancing, presents and cake… no drunk people doing keg stands and no angry drunks stripping in front of our fellow classmates. I almost didn't believe it was my birthday party. While I was opening presents I felt awkward, usually my birthday parties ended way before I had the chance to open any gifts. Bob would throw a tantrum or Miriam would pass out face first into the birthday cake. Actually having everyone interested and attentive was all new to me. After opening presents, Arnold rallied everyone together around the cake and lit the candles for me to blow out. He looked so pleased that I was having a good time, it was like his eyes were glued to me the whole night just so he could watch my reaction.

Around eleven o'clock everyone had gone home and left a mess behind. While Arnold was putting away the leftover cake I grabbed a few trash bags and began cleaning up some of the plastic cups and paper plates. "You don't have to do that." Arnold came up from behind and grabbed the bag.

"You aren't cleaning this up all by yourself football head. Let me help." when I reached for the bag he pulled it away.

"I'm going to clean it up in the morning… lets go back inside." we crawled back through the window and locked it behind us. "Did you have fun tonight?" he tossed the trash bag on the floor.

"Are you kidding?" I sat down on his bed and sighed. "For the first time in my life… my birthday wasn't a joke… and it's all because of you."

"You deserved a nice birthday.." he joined me on the bed. "I'm glad you liked it."

"Thank you Arnold… for everything."

"_Anytime_.." he kissed the side of my mouth. "I have one more surprise for you."

"Surprise?" my eyebrow raised slightly. "What kind of surprise?" After having a birthday party I had only dreamed of until now, what else could he surprise me with?

"Your birthday present!" he grinned. "Close your eyes.."

"Arnold! You didn't have to get me anything." being his girlfriend was the best gift he could ever give me.

His fingers gently guided my eyes shut while he produced my gift. He grabbed my hand and set something in my palm. "Open your eyes."

A small box rested in the palm of my hand, complete with a pink bow on top. "_Arnold.._" I mused. "What is it?"

"Open it silly!"

I untied the bow and lifted the box open. Inside was a brand new white gold locket with the initials 'A' and 'H' engraved on the front in fancy cursive. "Oh my gosh… Arnold!" tears begged to fall from my eyes. He continued to watch me in excitement, his eyes had a sense of nervousness as well. I pressed the clasp of the locket and opened it, revealing a photo of me and Arnold on Valentines day, I was riding his back and hugging him.. Both of us were smiling brightly. "You got an inscription?" I said like a young child on Christmas morning. I held the locket up and read aloud,

_'Until the end of forever you'll be in my heart. _

_I love you,_

_Arnold'_

My fingers nearly dropped the locket. "Arnold?… I-…it…. It says…"

"I know." his hands were shaking worse than mine. He reached over and took his hand in mine. He took a deep breath and stared intently into my eyes. "Helga… I love you." His words rendered me completely mute. I had waited for this moment my entire life, I had dreamt about it several dozen times. In my dreams we proclaim our love for each other and we ride off into the sunset… the real thing was staring me in the face and all I could do was stare at him like an idiot. His grip on my hand intensified the longer we sat there in silence.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and let out a shaky breath. "_I love you too Arnold.._"

"Wow.." he sighed. "This feels weird."

"Weird good?" The nervous feeling in the pit of my stomach intensified.

"Yeah… good." he chuckled nervously. "I've never told a girl I love her before…" we both simultaneously leaned in and kissed. "It was a lot less scary than I thought it was going to be."

"You never need to worry about my feelings for you." I rubbed our noses together. "You're the only one I'll ever love like this." I initiated another kiss which lasted longer than the last one. We laid down on his bed and continued kissing each other feverishly. A part of me was still afraid of what would happen if we continued like this… how far we could get before he would freak out and send me home. When his hand started unbuttoning the top buttons of my shirt I removed my mouth from his. "What's going on?"

"Whatever you want." he kissed the palm of my hand and worked his way up until he was kissing my neck.

"Are you sure?" my body trembled underneath him.

"I've never been more sure." he leaned down and captured my lips with his once again. "I love you Helga… and I've thought about it a lot. I've never felt this way about anyone before."

"Okay.." my hands shakily cupped the side of his face. "Do you have….um…. Protection?"

"Actually.." he leaned over towards the nightstand and opened the drawer, producing a small silver packet.

"I never thought you'd actually buy condoms." I took the condom and held it between my fingers. "_But I'm glad you did_"

"Thank Gerald." he chuckled, unbuttoning the final button from my shirt.

After a few articles of clothing fell on the floor and things intensified between us, a nagging voice kept going off in the back of my head…. Reminding me that Arnold still didn't know the truth. "Arnold.." I mumbled between kisses.

"Hm?"

"I need to tell you something… it's kind of important." his kisses ceased. "It's about me and Wolfgang.."

"Helga." he sighed. "I told you it doesn't matter-"

I covered his mouth with my hand "I never slept with him…" I slowly released his mouth. "He just wasn't you…"

A huge grin spread across his face. "So you've never..?"

"Nope."

His mouth covered mine once again, continuing on his journey. "I love you." he repeated. It was something I could never get tired of hearing him say. Those three words were the most beautiful words in the human language.

"I love you too Arnold…"

_Always.._

* * *

**O_0**

**Hehe…**


	17. The hardest pill

**To the person who left a long, seemingly angry review about my "STD" references/jokes… if you don't like it, then don't read. I don't tolerate being reprimanded in that fashion. Nobody forced you to read this story. Its comments like that that make me want to disable "anonymous" comments. So if you can't say anything nice, then leave me be. Thanks..**

**To my other AMAZING reviewers, I LOVVVE YOU! Lol. This story has been a long and crazy journey and I've loved every second of it ;) thanks for coming along for the ride and making this possible!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold.**

* * *

_**(**Three Weeks Later**)- **_**April**

**Helgas POV:**

_Please please please please please please PLEASE! PRETTY FREAKIN' PLEASE!_

"Helga Pataki…" Principal Reed glanced over the list one more time. "…and Gerald Johanssen."

"NO!" we shouted in unison. "HEY!" glares were exchanged in irritation.

"You two will be taking group two. Understood? And no funny business." his finger waved angrily back and forth.

I honestly didn't want to understand that statement. Gerald and I exchanged less irritated glances before reluctantly walking off to find the poor souls we would be 'mentoring' today. Over the past week groups of seniors have been taking in the local eight graders who would be attending Hillwood High next year, the seniors jobs are to 'inform' future students of all the 'fun and exciting' things we have to offer here. This week was me, Gerald, Phoebe, Lila, Stinky, Eugene, Rhonda, Harold, Nadine and Arnolds week to 'mentor'. Unfortunately for me I was paired with tall hair boy for the day, not only did we participate in completely different activities within the confines of school, but we both can get carried away when we bicker.

"Oh Arnold! Isn't this ever so exciting? I'm certain we'll be an amazing team." Lila and Arnold walked past us, arm in arm. Though I no longer chant tribal death threats in Lilas name, it doesn't mean I have to like them working together for a whole day.

_Stupid overgrown leprechaun she-beast.._

A hand cupped my shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. "Cool out Pataki. You're going to scare the eight graders if you have steam coming out your ears."

"I'm fine _Geraldo._ Let's just get this over with…"

He rolled his eyes and walked ahead of me a few steps. Thus begins the beginning of another painstakingly lame day in the world of Helga G. Pataki. When we got to the bus loading zone to meet our group of kids, Arnold and Lila were just meeting up with their group and introducing themselves. As we passed by them I flicked Arnold in the back of the head, suppressing a giggle. Surprisingly he didn't break character in front of the eight graders which was kind of a let down. I should have just flicked Lila while I had the chance..

"Enough of your foreplay!" Gerald hissed, dragging me towards the last remaining group.

_What did he know about our foreplay…?_

"Hi" he waved at our group… consisting of three girls and two boys. "I'm Gerald, and this is Helga-"

"Shush it hair boy! I can introduce myself!" my fist raised threateningly. The two younger boys chuckled in amusement. "_Anyway…. _I'm Helga."

"_They know that already_." he muttered.

My elbow slammed into his ribs 'on accident' when I reached into my back pocket to get the flyers and pens. "So, these papers are schedule planners for next year, on one side is a list of all major courses from English to Woodshop. And on the other will be the part you fill in after we're done today."

Gerald, who was still huddled over and wheezing heavily glared up at me. His palm collided with the back of my knee, causing me to stumble and drop the flyers in a stream of black and white. The kids did a collective gasp when my butt collided with the ground, which happened to be directly in a rain puddle. "HA!" he pointed and laughed.

"Touché." I lifted myself up, completely stoic. "You do know this means payback, right?" we both leaned in and growled.

"Um… I may be new to this whole mentoring program thing, but aren't you two supposed to show us something?" one of the boys picked up a flyer off the ground.

"Gerald is going to have to start you guys off… it seems I need to change my pants." I pointed to my wet derriere. "Think you can handle it?"

"Just go change your pants Pataki. We'll meet you in the library.."

Unfortunately for me I only had a pair of gym shorts in my locker that I kept forgetting to take home. Never in my life had I wanted to smack the hell out of someone so badly as I changed into those shorts. I was going to smell like a moldy pond for the rest of the day… _fantastic. _I extracted my wet jeans from the bathroom stall, throwing them in my backpack and paused at the large mirror before exiting. I looked completely ridiculous, red and gold gym shorts and a light pink shirt… like nobody's going to notice _that_. Stupid Gerald. Forcing my head up, I walked out of the bathroom attempting to look confident in my choice of attire. Before I got three steps out someone was already looking at me awkwardly. At that point I didn't know how I was going to get Gerald back… but damn it, I was gonna get him.

"Helga?" Arnold called out to me from a distance. He had a rather large stack of papers blocking part of his view, he repositioned the mountain of papers so he could look at me better. "What are you doing out here? Where's your group?"

"Isn't it obvious football head?" I smirked. "And why did you fall astray from your group? Miss Sawyer must be ever so worried!" my hands clasped together dramatically.

"Mock Lila if you must." he grinned, taking a step towards me. "I was getting copies of the schedule forms for the librarian to keep at her desk. I was heading back there right now. Where's Gerald anyway?"

"The library." I took half the papers he had been carrying so he wouldn't be forced to balance the teetering stack. "I was just about to go back."

"Thanks." he leaned over and kissed my cheek.

"Yeah yeah… come on Romeo." I playfully kicked my left foot backwards and it collided with his perfect little rear end.

When we got back to the library Gerald and Lila were on opposite ends and talking to their students. We dropped off the papers at the librarians desk and we bid our farewells for the time being. On my way back over to Gerald, I wondered why I was even doing this. Deep down I wasn't really into the whole mentoring program thing, mainly because having someone 'older' than you explain the ins and outs of high school doesn't amount to much. There are no guidelines or assurances in finding who you are, its supposed to be our individual journeys that shape us.. the people we meet and the things we see, our general experiences.. All that jazz. Nobody can really help you feel welcome in high school. You either excel or fail in your endeavors. It's what you make of it that matters. But who would listen to my honest advice anyway?

"Nice shorts." Gerald snickered.

"Don't start with me." I held my hand up between us. "So what did I miss?"

"We were just about to go to the _agriculture_ department." he cringed. "But I'm sure _you'll_ fit in with that smell."

"Thin ice Johanssen." my index finger and thumb measured a small amount, indicating how much further he'd have to push me before I'd kill him.

"You know I'm just messing with you Helga! We're practically in-laws after all." his left arm hooked around my neck, crushing me against him. "I've known Helga here since preschool. And to top it off she's dating my best friend." the other kids nodded in understanding.

"Are you done?" I groaned into the side of his chest. "These kids didn't come here for a history lesson and I certainly didn't come back to face-fondle your man boobs." with that I was finally able to push away from him. "Crimeny!"

After a few more hours of teasing and joking around, we had managed to get through the required subjects and locations needed before lunch. When we dropped the kids off at the cafeteria Arnold was already waiting for me out front, sporting a mischievous grin. Gerald pushed me aside and raced ahead of me so he could talk to him first. I picked up my pace and grabbed at his shirt to try and slow him down.

"Do you two have ants in your pants or what?" he chuckled.

"Your girlfriend is wacko! She _bit_ me!" he pulled up his sleeve to reveal a darkened bite mark on his bicep.

_Thank you very much._

"Join the club." Arnold lifted the bottom of his shirt to reveal a similar bite on his chest. "She's a biter."

…_..hehe…._

"I'm not even going to ask.." Gerald smirked in my direction.

"Then don't" my eyes narrowed.

"Okay you two… give peace a chance." he took a step between us, wrapping an arm around each of our shoulders.

"Whatever.." I pushed away from them both.

Gerald spotted Phoebe across campus and took off like a bat out of hell, exchanging no other words with us. As we watched his figure fading in the distance I felt a pair of arms wrap around me from behind, and a set of lips pressing into my neck. "_Why'd you really bite him_?"

"I owed him some sort of physical pain." I bit my lip to suppress a giggle. "It was spur the moment."

"As long as it was for torture purposes only." he sunk his teeth into the pulse point in my neck, causing me to jump. "So do you want to get out of here? Maybe Slausens?"

I inwardly groaned and threw my head back on his shoulder. "You're killing me football head… I'd love to, but I can't. Newspaper meeting today at lunch. Apparently we're preparing for the prom edition of the newspaper… _ugh_." Prom isn't exactly a synonymous word for 'happy' in my world..

"Darn." he sighed. "Well.. I probably won't see you until after school. Are you still coming by my place later on?"

"Maybe.. If you're lucky." less than two seconds later his fingers began tickling my ribs. "OKAY! I give!" I abruptly turned around and bit his shoulder with force.

"Ouch! You and biting people?... Bad combo." one hand rubbed his newest flesh wound while he placed a kiss on my forehead.

"See you later football head." I smirked.

Before I got too far away he grabbed my hand and halted me. "I love you.."

I could feel a slight blush wash over my cheeks at the mention of those three words. He took great pleasure in seeing me go loopy in a public setting. "Love you too."

"And Helga?.."

"Hm?" I sighed dreamily at his hand still resting in mine.

"… Why are you wearing gym shorts?"

_I'm going to kill Gerald… slowly._

* * *

***Flashback*- **_**(**Three Weeks Earlier**)**_

Something was different about this particular morning. Within my poetic repertoire I couldn't quite find the exact words to describe the warmth that has overtaken me. In the course of one evening, my life has changed entirely. The world as I knew it and all of the people in it, but more importantly I was different. With the familiar scent of his pillow hitting my nose as I buried my face into it and the softness of his gloriously fantastic sheets, a joyful grin found its way to my face even though a larger part of my brain was still asleep. This moment was one that I had only dreamt of until now. I cracked an eye open, forcing myself to come down from my high and face reality. I found I was facing the wall, more importantly it was _Arnolds_ wall. A framed picture of me and him sat two shelves up next to a photo of his parents. Turning over slightly, I reached out to grab Arnold to find that there was nobody next to me.

"Arnold?" I sat up with the sheets draped over my frame.

He wasn't in the bedroom. A feeling of panic registered in the back of my mind before noticing a small bouquet of flowers sitting on his nightstand. I fell back against his pillow and let out an uncharacteristic giggle. Arnold was in love with me and gave me freakin' _flowers_ after experiencing undoubtedly the most important moment in my life thus far. I wanted to bask in this moment for the rest of my life, I never wanted it to end! His bedroom door swung open suddenly and I let out a winded gasp, covering myself as much as I could. Arnold walked in wearing nothing but pajama bottoms and he was vigorously toweling off his hair with his head down. I went back into a reclining position and watched him as he continued his morning routine, still unaware I was awake. He went inside the closet for several moments and returned in a pair of jeans and a shirt… _darn_.

"No strip tease for Helga I see?"

He jumped nearly half a foot in the air and spun around to look at me. "Helga! You're awake. I was just about to get you up." after searching the floor for a moment he found my clothes and tossed them to me. "Did you sleep okay?" he sat down in his computer chair, watching me slip my shirt over my head. Of course he wanted to know if I '_slept'_ okay. Typical Arnold..

"Slept like a baby." I yawned, stretching my arms over my head.

He leaned back in his chair, tapping the heel of his foot up and down while I sat on the edge of the bed, pretending there was something interesting about his carpet. It barely hit me that we were both at a loss for words. What exactly are you supposed to say after experiencing something like that? '_Good work Football head?' _was there some sort of expected exchange between new lovers?…. Good God, we're _lovers_! A loud dreamy sigh escaped my lips before I could stop myself. My sigh didn't go unnoticed. His eyes met mine, keeping my gaze for a good thirty seconds. I think subconsciously he already knew what I was thinking about. He simply smiled softly and looked away. If I didn't know any better I could swear he was blushing. Was he reading my dang thoughts now too?

"So…" he cleared his throat. "Do you want to get breakfast? I've got a shift at Slausens later, so I can drop you off before I go.."

"How do you plan on sneaking me past your grandparents?" I began redoing my pigtails and adjusting my bow, my insecurities were preparing me to bolt at the first opportunity. "I'm pretty sure your grandpa would get a kick out of this 'coming of age' moment."

"He would get a kick out of it." He rolled his eyes, grimacing. "I would gladly go the rest of my life without getting another speech about my 'coming of age'."

The longer I felt his gaze upon me, the more uneasy I felt. My heart was beating a mile a minute. "What happens between the sheets _stays_ between the sheets football head... I get it.." I slowly began backing away towards the nearest exit; the roof. My mind was screaming at me to get out before I make things more awkward by acting like a lovesick fool. "So anyway, I'll save you the embarrassment. I'll head out from the fire escape."

"Wait what?" he shot up from his chair and halted me at the ladder to his roof. "You don't want to hang out?"

I glanced down at his hands which were gripping tightly to my forearms, then met his eyes riddled with uncertainty. "I've got some stuff I need to work on for the paper. Plus I need to take a shower…" my voice trailed off as I got lost in my own erratic behavior.

_What's wrong with me?_

"Helga?" his hand released my left arm so he could angle my chin. "Are you okay? What's going on?" being in close proximity to him was clouding my mind ever further. His eyes grew more and more worried the longer I stared blankly at him. I was suddenly pulled into his warm embrace, followed by a soft kiss to my forehead. "_Talk to me.._" he coaxed.

"I'm afraid if I talk too much it'll ruin this little bubble we've created." I buried my face further into his neck.

"I'm listening. Really Helga, I am." he pulled us both down on the bed. "What's on your mind?"

_Why did he have to be so kind and sensitive all the time? God, I love that boy… _

"…Was last night everything you imagined it would be?" I tried my hardest to keep a blush from forming on my face while simultaneously praying I didn't probe him to death with my questioning.

He took a moment to consider his answer. "I have no regrets… _or_ complaints if that's what you're thinking." a small almost devilish smile formed at the corners of his mouth.

"So you're happy?" my inner girly-girl was dying to unleash some Olga style tears. I hated feeling girly… I mean _really_ hated it. I felt like I needed to punch something just for harboring those kinds of feelings.

"The happiest I've been in a long time." his thumb subconsciously began rubbing the back of my hand. "This is new territory for the both of us... Not to mention the whole 'love' thing is kinda intimidating if I do say so myself."

"Just to let you know… I'll never get used to hearing you say you love me." I chuckled.

"As long understand its true." a pair of lips came into contact with my cheek, after a few moments I grabbed his face and kissed him on the lips, surprising us both. It was our first kiss since the night before, everything about it seemed so special and genuinely beautiful. This was a new chapter of our lives that we were starting together and everything was going to be different this time. We have an unbreakable bond bringing us together… _love. _It was an element that always seemed to be missing before.

We fell back against the mattress with a thud and continued pawing at each other for a few minutes before I broke away and rolled off of him. "I wasn't kidding about the paper." I sighed. "Just call me later. Or stop by after you shift." his only response was a half serious pout. "Don't give me that!" I pecked his lips hastily, removing his frown. "Just scratch what I said. Come by later… no need to call." my voice dropped down an octave as I seductively ran my index finger down his ribcage. "_I'll be waiting_."

"I'll be looking forward to it _milady- _AH!" he suddenly rolled off the side of the bed under my forceful shove. "….Ouch" the top of his oddly shaped head poked up, eyes glaring.

"Woopsies." I smirked. "Old habits die hard." my feet sprang to life and I climbed up the ladder to the roof. "See you later loverboy." I called over my shoulder. My right knee barely made contact with the roof before a hand clasped around my other ankle, keeping me halfway inside. He pulled his top half out the window and hovered above me, watching with an amused smirk. "Am I your prisoner now or what?" I chose to ignore the fact that he was nestled between my legs, sending my mind to very inappropriate places.

"I want to drive you home." he leaned down for a brief kiss. "Is _that_ okay?"

"If you insist football head. You didn't have to tackle me to ask." I chuckled.

"Do we ever do things normally?"

_That's a very loaded question… _

Despite my uncertainty and nervousness, it wasn't awkward between us on the drive back to my place. He even insisted on walking me to the door, like I was magically going to get lost on my way from his car to my front door. His chivalry was just another reason I was madly in love with him. I personally think he wanted another opportunity to kiss me, which made my heart flutter at the mere idea. I loved being the center of his world, knowing I was important to him in every way possible. I guess I can kind of understand how he felt for all these years. It really _was_ scary… in a good way.

After a seemingly never-ending kiss at the front door, I finally managed to get inside. As expected, neither Big Bob or Miriam bothered to question where I had stayed last night or with whom. I guess having negligent parents did have its perks. Big Bob was the living room watching one of his ridiculous soap operas on his big screen, and Miriam was in the kitchen mixing up another one of her liver damaging smoothies. For them it was just a regular day, nothing out of the usual. Even if they had been fully aware that their youngest child spent the night in a boys bed, they still wouldn't give a rats ass. They would probably beg Arnold to take me off their hands. If only it was that easy.

"Helga?" Miriam called out in her usual slurred monotone.

"_Yes_ Miriam?" I resisted the urge to ignore her completely, which probably would have been a better choice. I poked my head inside the kitchen and studied her mixing the contents inside her precious blender.

"Where were you this morning sweetie? I checked your room and you weren't there."

_Kudos Miriam, you paid attention for once in your miserable life._

"Well Miriam, I was off in the land of rainbows and smiles looking for a purple unicorn to take me to Kokomo"

She didn't even bother to look away from her blender "Uh huh, that's nice dear. Leave a note next time."

_I retract my last statement._

"Sure thing _mom_" I scoffed. Now that I was legally 18, the prospect of getting the heck out of this demented nuthouse was more than appealing. As soon as my graduation cap gets tossed in the air, I'll be out of here. It was the whole 'where' issue that remained. An even bigger question remained unanswered after all this time, were Arnold and I going to be separated? I couldn't even bare the thought... Especially now. When I got back inside my room I checked my cell phone and discovered a text message.

'_From_: **Football Head**- _Miss you already! ;) xoxo'_

"Oh my love!" my body flopped on to the bed, producing my new locket from inside my shirt. "A twist of glorious fate has brought us here! A scenario that once only taunted me in my dreams has become a reality, you love me! You _really_ love me! And now.." I sighed. "Now we have everything. Our souls are one." I pressed the clasp of the locket and opened it. "Your words are like music to my ears _'Until the end of forever you'll be in my heart.' _Oh Arnold!"

My heart felt like it was going to explode. I had everything I had ever desired and dreamt of for so long. I wanted to climb the tallest mountain and proclaim to the world that my true love reciprocates my undying affection, that our love has finally conquered all the ridiculous obstacles that the world had thrown at us. I know there are plenty more obstacles along the way, but now it's different. Arnold loves me, and I love him… nothing can break that.

* * *

_**(**Four Weeks Later**)- May **_(_basically a week after the events at the beginning of the chapter)_

There was one thing waiting for me when I got home: Taffeta. A big, ugly poofy-ass taffeta dress amplified with tulle, ribbons and gems. If someone offered to stick a gun in my mouth, I would probably seriously consider it. I never really wanted to get roped into going to the senior prom in the first place, but Arnold used his unique powers of persuasion and BAM, the next thing I know I had an expensive stupid pink frilly dress that I'll never wear again and a hairstylist yanking my hair into a ridiculous curly up do that I'll laugh at in ten years. Rhonda and the girls all decided to spend some of our last 'bonding' moments of the year inside a salon getting dolled up for (and I quote the princess herself) "the best night of our lives" while the guys shot pool down at the arcade… _lucky bastards_. Whoever thought it would be fun to dress up like a Barbie doll for a night and parade around in front of your classmates deserves to be hung upside down and beaten mercilessly. I have attended only one prom in my life, and it ended in tears and disappointment. The last thing I wanted was to relive that terrible experience. Arnold promised that tonight was going to be the prom I deserved, one with all the cheesy fixings. Corsage, limo and anything else I desired. What I _really_ desired was a fancy hotel room with a 'do not disturb' sign. Forget all the prom hassle. But my gallant boyfriend has sworn off all naughty behavior for the evening… _prude_. He just HAD to take away the one aspect of prom that wasn't totally cringe worthy.

After spending four agonizingly dreadful hours in the salon, we all separated to our dwellings to finalize our transformations into prom zombies. The clock was ticking down, in just two hours Arnold would be knocking on my front door with a pink rose corsage in hand and his signature half lidded gaze, ready to take me out to our first school function as boyfriend and girlfriend. All I had to do was be dressed and ready with a smile plastered on my face. It sounded a lot more fun and exciting than it inevitably was going to end up being. I unfortunately was forced to ask Miriam for assistance putting on my stupid poofy nightmare they call a dress so I wouldn't ruin my hair in the process. Once it was over my head I shooed her out so I could continue my inner tirade and curse Arnold for using his gorgeous little football headed charms and getting me into this mess.

"Why am I doing this?" I growled at my reflection in the mirror while applying a coat of mascara on my eyelashes. I've only worn makeup a handful of times in my life, and I certainly didn't feel comfortable applying it with a circular wire brush near my _eyes. _Maybe Arnold digs blind chicks..

"Helga?" Miriam knocked quietly on the other side of the door.

"I have my dress on Miriam. I'm fine."

"The UPS man has an envelope for you that you need to sign for."

"Envelope?" I wondered aloud. The only envelopes I would get through UPS were from…. _Colleges_. "I'M COMING!" I opened my bedroom door and sped past Miriam, nearly knocking her off her feet.

When I opened the front door the UPS man gave me the once over. "Prom night?"

"Yeah yeah bucko, hand over the goods!" I quickly scribbled out my signature on his paperwork and grabbed the envelope, hastily slamming the door in his face.

Miriam stood at the bottom of the staircase and looked at me with renewed interest. "Who's it from?"

I held the thick envelope in the palms of my hands as if it was a sacred document that could fall apart with one wrong move. Inside that one envelope contained what may well be my entire future… everything I worked for twelve years. I glanced at the label and let out a shallow breath "Brown University.."

"Are you going to open it?"

Brown University is a private college on the east coast, on average only 11 percent of Browns applicants are accepted. It was at the top of my list of universities I want to get into. Opening this envelope can possibly change everything, did I really want to risk depressing myself on a night that meant so much to Arnold? "I'm afraid I won't like what's inside..." I almost felt like laughing that I was facing one of my important life altering moment with _Miriam_ in tow. She did look generally interested though.

"Do you want some privacy?" she took a few steps towards the kitchen.

"No." I sighed. "I want you here." a weak smile formed at the corners of my mouth. I carefully began peeling the flap open, my hands couldn't stop shaking. "This is it.." I took one last look at Miriam before reaching inside and pulling out the packet inside. "_Congratulations Miss Helga G. Pataki-_" my voice completely cracked and I nearly fell over.

"Helga!" a genuine smile spread across her face and she came barreling towards me, wrapping her arms around my shoulders. "Congratulations! You did it."

I was genuinely in complete and utter shock. I didn't know whether I should be doing a back flip for joy or emptying my stomach contents into the nearest toilet. Miriam continued to giggle and hug me excitedly while I stared off into space, still unable to process what just happened. I, Helga G. Pataki got accepted into college. I had a future. I obtained the seemingly unattainable.

"Crimeny." I concluded. "HOLY CRAP!" Miriams cheery disposition began rubbing off on me. "I have to go tell Arnold!" I grabbed the ends of my dress and ran upstairs to finish getting ready, which consisted of putting on an atrocious pair of pink heels and a small pink bejeweled tiara and stuffing my new locket in the front of my dress. When I came back downstairs Miriam gave me another congratulatory hug and handed me the keys to the Hummer. My mother may be a lush, but I'll admit she has her awesome moments. My thoughts were racing with what I was going to tell Arnold when I got to his house. Was he going to be excited? Sad? Angry? It was silly that I was even thinking about it, Arnold knows how much Brown means to me. He _has_ to be excited.

I knocked impatiently at the front door until his grandpa answered. He commented on my attire before noting that Arnold was upstairs getting ready, which was all I needed to know. I practically pushed him out of my way so I could race up to his room and spill my guts. The suspense was killing me! As I approached the staircase to his room I could hear Arnold talking with someone, which surprised me when I heard another voice in the room with him.

"_I feel like I'm lying to her_." his voice came out muffled from the other side of the door. I reached for the handle and opened it slightly, giving me a partial view.

"You haven't technically lied about anything." Gerald stood in front of Arnolds mirror, adjusting his tie.

"When she finds out it won't be pretty. She'll never forgive me." Arnold suddenly came into view, he was pacing back and forth while simultaneously inserting his cufflinks into his jacket. I began feeling extremely sick to my stomach. It was no mystery who they were referring to. Eavesdropping and spying has finally come back to bite me in the ass. But what scared me more that anything… what were they talking about?

"How much longer until you-… You know?" I felt myself inwardly gasp. Was Gerald talking about?-

"I can't do it Gerald. I love her"

_Darn right you cant 'do IT'. Whatever it is we can work it out._

"If you don't dump her first, she'll dump you anyway my man. We've talked about this already… breaking up with her will be the easiest option."

I began feeling light headed, if I didn't get out of there soon I was going to pass out and fall down the starts, blowing my cover. What happened to the elated girl that entered this house less than ten minutes ago?… oh yeah, she found out her boyfriend has secretly wanted to dump her for God knows _how_ long!

"I don't know Gerald. Breaking up with Helga just seems so cruel. She's the first girl I've ever loved… I shared a lot with her."

_Yeah like your virginity, you dipshit._

"But you've kept a lot to yourself too man. When you love someone, you don't harbor anything." he approached him and set his hands on his shoulders. "Helga is going to be heartbroken, hell, so will you! I know you care about her… but breaking up with her was something you realized you had to do a while ago… and the less she knows the better off you'll both be in the future. You gotta make a clean break. Helga will understand eventually."

Arnold let out a long sigh, tossing his head back. "I can't believe it's come down to this."

"I'm here for you buddy. Whatever you need."

"What I _want_ is to go back a month and stop myself from making the same mistake."

In the back of my mind I began thinking of what happened a month ago when it hit me. Around a month ago it was my birthday… the night we-

"_No.._" I gasped under my breath. So much for Rhondas theory on 'the best night of our lives'…. it looks like I'm about to have a repeat of last years prom.

Despite Arnolds insistence, our love _was_ a Supernova… and according to him it had finally fizzled out…

* * *

***cue dramatic music* DUN DUN DUN. **

**Sorry about the delay of this chapter, I've been super busy and I had a mild case of writers block ;) but have no fear! I don't plan on taking so long to update for the next chapter. I WILL be back! Lol.**

**Until then, reviews= L.O.V.E.**


	18. Liar liar

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! You have no idea how much I love hearing your positive feedback. As for the twist at the end of the last chapter, you'll find out what the 'secret' is in this one! Hold on to your seats my friends, it'll be a bumpy ride! =)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold!**

* * *

_**(**An Hour Earlier**)**_

**Arnolds POV:**

I never asked to fall in love with Helga G. Pataki. I never had any intentions to. My life was on a straight path driven by my desires to see the world and make something of myself and change the world one country at a time. If anyone had told me two years ago that I would be madly in love with Helga and be in considerably _the_ most meaningful relationship of my life thus far, I would think you were on some serious psychedelic drugs. Everything changes eventually, it's common fact. School years come and go, the seasons continue their yearly change. People fall in love… we lose people we love. We're born, and we die. There's a pattern that the world follows, and we're just along for the ride. In the end, _everything changes_.

I've spent nearly ten months with undoubtedly the most amazing woman I'll ever know. She was the first person to really show me the world through different eyes, including finally seeing _her_. It changed my life in every way possible, and I can never thank her enough for what she's done. My whole world has become enveloped with this amazing person. When I stop and think about it, I guess everything in my life has always come back to her. She's been there since I was a tyke, she's seen me grow up, and she's seen me at my highs and lows. After all of the time we spent fretting over our relationship, we finally found mutual grounds and discovered this deep love we could mutually share. It's the bumps in the road along the way that keep us at bay-

"You're spacing out again buddy." Gerald used the end of his pool stick to painfully jab my ribs. "Does this have anything to do with a certain 2am phone call I received last night?" he leaned across the table and sunk the eight ball in the right corner pocket. "HA! I win" he grinned while the guys groaned at his third consecutive win.

"I just have a lot on my mind.." I watched him as he reset the balls in the rack. "Do you think we can duck out early? Our tuxes are still at the tailors. We gotta pick them up." I hated being the wet blanket of our 'guy time' group, but my mind couldn't focus on a ridiculous game where you smack colored balls into holes with a stick. There was more pressing concerns at the moment..

"Sure." he studied me carefully, trying to read me as usual.

"Gerald, I'm fine." I assured.

"Whatever you say man.." he tossed his pool stick to Eugene which inevitably caused him to fall from his bar stool and harshly land on the hardwood floor of the arcade. "My bad Eugene."

"I'm okay.." he muttered weakly.

"Are you sure you don't want to stick around? I reckon we've got time for another game." Stinky continued to apply green chalk to the end of his pool stick.

"Yeah _Arnold_." Harold laughed, "You don't want to stick around and get you butt whooped some more?"

"No thanks." I deadpanned. "I've got some stuff to do." I didn't bother to ask Gerald to join me as I gathered my stuff and walked towards the exit.

"Whatever loser!" Harold called out tauntingly. "Walk away like a sissy."

_I'd take being a sissy over being __**Harold**__ any day._

When I reached the front door of the boarding house Gerald was just a few feet behind me, calling out for me to wait up. "Dude, you're not being yourself today. You called me in the middle of the night freaking out about-"

"I know. Okay?" I sighed. "I can't talk about this.. Tonight is going to be special and I don't want to ruin it by thinking about _that_."

"_That_ is going to get you in some serious trouble."

"You don't have to remind me." I grumbled. "Can we just pick up our tuxes and _not_ talk about _it_? PLEASE?"

"Sure thing buddy. My lips are sealed." he mimed a zipper across his mouth.

_**(**25 minutes later**)**_

Gerald is a liar. The whole time we were getting our last fittings done at the tuxedo shop he kept talking and talking about our conversation last night. He had a billion questions and showed no signs of letting up. I eventually became mute, afraid I was going to explode in frustration. When we got back to my place Gerald had finally stopped prying. I had a feeling he wasn't done with his attempts at questioning me though. This whole prom ordeal started out as an exciting venture a few weeks ago, now it feels like I'm a lamb off to the slaughter house. I suppose I have nobody but myself to blame for my unsavory mood. I didn't like feeling so…. Out of control of my own life. It's this feeling that's been building up inside of me for several weeks. Yet again, I have nobody to blame but myself. _I_ put myself in this position. I'm the dummy..

Gerald came back into my room, fully dressed in his tuxedo minus his jacket. "Looking sharp." I chuckled.

"Likewise" he pointed to my unbuttoned shirt and the tie slung over my neck. "You are _really_ out of it today Arnold. Are you ever going to talk to me about it?"

I began fiddling with the buttons of my shirt and finally buttoning it closed. "I said enough last night.." my voice trailed off.

"Yeah, thanks for dropping that dirty bomb on me while I was half awake! I could hardly sleep after we hung up last night. You were completely demented!"

"I'm sorry, okay? I was panicking and I didn't know who else to talk to." not to mention talking to Helga about it would probably get my genitals critically injured.

"Why'd you wait so long to tell me?" he sat on the edge of my bed and began digging through his things in search of something.

"It's complicated." I groaned, falling face first on my couch.

"It's about to get even _more_ complicated my man. Helga is going to flip out and then proceed to kill you." he found his hair pick and stood in front of the mirror, starting his long and tedious task of 'sexifying' his hair, as he puts it.

"Do you think I don't know that already? Why do you think I'm freaking out so much? I've had to put up this front for _how long_ now? I don't know how much longer I can do this."

"You have to talk to her eventually. She _is_ your girlfriend, and this has a lot to do with her. No, scratch that. It has _everything_ to do with her!" leave it to Gerald for his special brand of 'wisdom' to bust my slowly deflating hope.

I finally sat up and finished buttoning my shirt before starting in on my tie. "I just…_can't_ believe this." I groaned, throwing my tie on the ground in frustration.

Gerald stopped working on his hair and picked up the tie to toss it back at me. "You've got to calm down Arnold. If Helga senses you're upset tonight she'll be all over it like flies on dog crap. She can't resist it. And then you'll be in major trouble when you spill your guts. You can't let the cat out of the bag tonight. You said so yourself!"

After an initial struggle I managed to finish putting on my tie along with the rest of my clothes. All that was left was cufflinks and the boutonnière, but the boutonnière would have to wait until we picked up Helga and Phoebe. Once again, my mind had drifted towards Helga… tonight… and having to pretend everything wasn't totally screwed up. "Gerald?" I stood up and began pacing back and forth.

"Hm?" he didn't bother to look away from the mirror and he became fixated on straightening his tie.

"I feel like I'm lying to her."

"You haven't technically lied about anything." I suppose in some way he was right. But it didn't mean he understood the kind of nerve-racking agony I was experiencing.

"When she finds out it won't be pretty. She'll never forgive me." My fingers began shaking, rendering me nearly unable to insert the cufflinks.

"How much longer until you-… You know?" he finally glanced at me from his reflection in the mirror.

I knew he was referring to our conversation last night.. The one where I clearly stated that I had to break up with Helga. I was delusional and sleep deprived and going out of my mind. I didn't mean it at the time. "I can't do it Gerald. I love her"

"If you don't dump her first, she'll dump you anyway my man. We've talked about this already… breaking up with her will be the easiest option." Did he realize what he was asking me to do? Breaking up with the girl of my dreams all because of one thing? I couldn't do it… but the more I thought about it, the more I realized she would most likely end up dumping me if I tried to talk to her about this. I was an idiot, and I deserve to be broken up with..

"I don't know Gerald. Breaking up with Helga just seems so cruel. She's the first girl I've ever loved… I shared a lot with her."

_I shared nearly everything with her.._

"But you've kept a lot to yourself too man. When you love someone, you don't harbor anything." he left his spot at the mirror and grabbed my shoulders. "Helga is going to be heartbroken, hell, so will you! I know you care about her… but breaking up with her was something you realized you had to do a while ago… and the less she knows the better off you'll both be in the future. You gotta make a clean break. Helga will understand eventually."

As long as I live, Helga would never understand it if I broke up with her without explanation. Would it really be the best option for us? I let out a frustrated groan and tossed my head back "I can't believe it's come down to this."

"I'm here for you buddy. Whatever you need." He pat my shoulder softly.

"What I _want_ is to go back a month and stop myself from making the same mistake." If that night hadn't happened… everything would be different. My relationship wouldn't be in turmoil and I wouldn't slowly be losing my mind.

"What's done is done Arnold. If you keep beating yourself up over this you'll never get past it. When you tell Helga the truth it'll set you free. But you gotta pick the right moment."

"I'll figure something out." I sighed dejectedly. "I'll talk to her in a few days and see what happens."

"Just keep your head up tonight Arnold. Give Helga a night to remember!" he slung his arm over my shoulders. "Tonight is going to be awesome. I know it."

"Lets hope I can keep it together." I smiled weakly. "Look, I'm going to wait outside for the limo driver. He should be here in ten minutes or so, will you be ready by then?"

"Yeah, I'll meet you downstairs."

My bedroom door was slightly cracked open, which was weird since Gerald closed it behind him when he came inside. He must have closed it softly. Out of habit I peeked through the crack in the door before opening it completely, as I suspected nobody was there. "See you downstairs!" I called over my shoulder as I descended the stairs. When I got to the bottom of the stairs grandma suddenly began taking pictures in quick succession, blinding me slightly.

"You look so handsome Kimba!" she took several more pictures before placing a kiss on my cheek.

"Thanks grandma." my vision was almost completely altered by floating beams of light. "I'm going to wait outside for our limo. We probably wont be back until late tonight. I'll lock up when I get back."

"I can't believe our little Arnold is all grown up… going to his senior prom. Remember when he was in diapers Pookie?" Grandpa reached over and ruffled my hair.

"I can't remember what I was doing ten minutes ago." she thoughtfully stared into space.

"Of course you can't Pookie." grandpa smirked. "Have a good time tonight Arnold. Make some memories!"

"I will grandpa."

_If only they knew how stupid their grandson really is.._

Grandma managed to throw in a few more photos before I was able to escape out the front door. I doubt my vision was going to lose these colored spots anytime soon. As I turned around to walk down the steps I almost collided with a heap sitting on the porch. I let out a startled gasp and rubbed my eyes a few times until I could see properly again. It wasn't just a heap of junk grandma left sitting around… it was Helga, completely decked out in a pink frilly dress and fancy heels.

"Helga?" I stared at her incredulously. "What are you doing here? Wasn't I supposed to pick you up?" my gaze traveled over to Big Bobs Hummer parked at the curb. "Helga?" I repeated. She looked like she had just seen a ghost, her face was pale and lifeless. "Jesus, are you okay?" I knelt down in front of her and stroked her cheek affectionately.

My touch seemed to awaken her from whatever trance she was in. She leaned heavily into my touch and sighed, closing her eyes. "Arnold.." her eyes slowly opened, finally meeting my worried gaze. "I love you." she looked on the brink of tears.

"I love you too." I poured every ounce of feeling I could into those three words. I _needed_ her to understand it was true. "What's going on Helga? Are you okay?"

She seemed to be studying me very intensely. It was only then that I realized all my worries and troubles faded away instantly when I was in her presence. It's something that got me into this mess in the first place, and it's the reason she can't pick up on my internal struggles. She didn't say anything for a good two minutes, she just stared at me. I couldn't figure out what had happened to her or why she was so upset. "I'm fine." she said far less convincingly than usual. Since we began dating, I can always sense when she was lying. Her gaze instantly fell to the floor and she let out a long sigh.

"Why did you come over? I thought me and Gerald were supposed to pick you and Phoebe up?" I decided to avoid calling her out on whatever was bothering her. That meant she would have ammunition to call me out too.

"It's not important now." she roughly pulled my hand away from hers.

"Everything you say is important Helga… talk to me." I took her face in my hands and forced her to look at me. "_Please.._" I nearly fell over when I finally took in how beautiful she looked tonight. I knew she had to have been miserable in the dress, but she looked absolutely stunning. The scowl on her face only added to her Helga-charms.

"I'm fine football head." she removed my hands and stood up.

"At least tell me why you came over." I bargained.

"Trust me… it's stupid.." she picked up the ends of her dress and went down the steps. "I-…it must be pre-prom jitters, okay? Do you blame me for wanting to see you all decked out in a tux?" _that_ sounded like the Helga I know and love… but she still didn't look right, there was something off.

"You've seen me in a tux before." I smirked.

"Maybe I just wanted to see you?.." she turned her back towards me, inhaling deeply and covering her face with her hands.

There wasn't a doubt about it, something was bothering her. She usually took every opportunity to be close to me or look me in the eyes. I didn't know how exactly to get her to tell me what was wrong when she wouldn't look at me for longer than a few moments… but I could always try. "Helga?" I stood directly behind her, placing my hands at her waist. "I didn't get a chance to say this yet, but you look amazing." I took a small step forward so our bodies were pressed against each other. Her body visibly stiffened at the close contact.

"No funny business tonight, right?" she effortlessly walked away from my advances.

How exactly was I supposed to communicate with her if she was putting these walls up? "Are you _sure_ you're okay Helga? You seem shaken."

Without warning she grabbed the back of my neck and forced our lips together, practically crushing me in her grip. It was almost kind of scary… My hands landed cautiously back on her waist as I pulled away from this sudden random display of affection. She latched her arms around my neck and pulled me even closer. "Quit asking me if I'm okay. I'm fine football head… I'm just as neurotic as ever." her voice seethed.

"That's good to know." I kissed her cheek before quickly stealing another kiss.

"What the hell man! Your grandma _blinded_ me!" Gerald came stumbling out the front door, rubbing his eyes vigorously. When he saw Helga in my embrace a small smirk appeared at his lips. "Well well… getting the prom night boogie going a little early I see?"

"Shut your pie hole Johanssen." Helga spat.

"Yeah yeah Pataki, I'm really scared." he pulled my boutonnière from his jacket and tossed it to Helga. "Get to work! And you too Arnold." he tossed her corsage towards me. "It's prom tradition." he grinned.

"Whatever" she muttered. "Here you go football head." she absentmindedly pinned the boutonnière to the lapel of my suit.

I put the corsage on her wrist just as the limo driver pulled up. When Helga was getting inside, Gerald held me back and mouthed '_what's up with her?_' to which I could only reply with a shrug… I was just as clueless as he was.

After we picked Phoebe up and took pictures for her parents, we all piled into the limo and made our way to the fancy hotel where our prom was being held. Being in Phoebes presence seemed to calm Helga a little, she was less disengaged and more attentive to the conversation… but she still wouldn't look at me. It was making _me_ feel on edge again. I attempted to wrap my arm around Helga but the moment my arm made contact with her skin she scooted further down the seat, not even bothering to look at me. Gerald and Phoebe both took notice to Helgas odd behavior and gave me unsure shrugs. When we pulled up to the hotel Helga couldn't get out of the limo fast enough, she practically shoved us out of her way.

"What the _hell_ crawled up her ass?" Gerald waited to vent until she was out of earshot.

"I don't know! She randomly shows up on my porch with this stoic look on her face, and why I try and ask her what's wrong she tells me its nothing." we both watched as Phoebe and Helga met up with the other girls so Rhonda could inspect their attire. "What am I going to do Gerald? Something is _really _bugging her!"

"Just don't let her attitude get to you! You gotta keep up the happy face or else she'll _definitely _figure something is wrong. Try and gently pry it out of her.. Don't ask directly. Keep it cool." he grabbed me by my shoulders and pushed me towards the group of girls. "Go get her!"

"Okay okay!" I hissed. For some reason my brain was warning me that trying to get Helga to talk was a big mistake. If she wanted to talk about it, she would. Clinging to her would just make her irritated. "Hey girls.." I approached the group with caution.

"Hey Arnold! _Excellent_ tux, it suits you." Rhonda grinned.

"Um… thank you?" I looked over at Helga for an escape from any more 'fashion' talk.

"Lets go football head, I'm hungry." she grabbed my wrist and dragged me towards the buffet table.

Dinner with Helga was in a word; awkward. We sat there in pretty much complete silence except for the sound of silverware clattering and our peers chatting with one another. I would glance over at her every once in a while… she looked so lost and alone. For someone who claimed to be hungry, she continued to push her food around on her plate and rarely took a bite of anything. I was desperate to know what put her in such turmoil that she couldn't even tell me about it. I wanted to comfort her, but she refused to even give me the opportunity. As we finished eating we stayed stagnant at our table watching the other students dancing and having a good time. I could tell Helga was still lost in her own thoughts in the midst of all this prom hoopla.

"So Helga…" I broke the uncomfortable silence "do you um… want to dance?"

My voice seemed to break her out of her daze. She glanced over at me and considered her options. After what felt like an eternity she nodded solemnly, grabbing my hand and pulling me out of my chair. When we got to the dance floor a slow song came on so I instinctively pulled her close and began swaying along with the music. She hesitantly placed her hands on my shoulders and followed my lead. I felt like I was doing something wrong, everything seemed to keep Helga on edge like she couldn't relax and enjoy herself. She was as stiff as a board in my arms and she still refused to look at me longer than a few seconds. What on _earth_ was wrong?

"You aren't enjoying this." I laughed, trying to ease the tension. "What do _you_ want to do?"

She released me with a light shove and backed away slowly "I need some air."

"What the-?" my brain couldn't even process what was going on right now. She grabbed her phone off of our table and took off towards the back exit of the hotel without looking back once. I started feeling a tad weird after realizing I was standing alone on the dance floor with my mouth agape. "What the hell?" I shouted a little louder than I intended. Several people stopped dancing around me and stared at me like I had four heads. "What are you looking at?" I tossed my hands up in frustration. "UGH!" I pushed my way back through the group of people and went towards the exit Helga left from. The hotel we were at is located on the harbor overlooking downtown Hillwood, its considered one of the more romantic locations when seen at night. When I went outside Helga was standing next to the railing on the deck, staring out into the harbor. If it had been under any other circumstances, Helga would probably be swooning under the glow of the moon. But tonight… well… she definitely wasn't swooning.

"Do you know what that is down there?" her voice caused me to jump slightly. How did she even know I was here?

I cautiously perched myself next to her against the railing and looked to where she was pointing. "It's the docks." I glanced at her. "Why?"

She stared a beat longer at the docks before looking over at me. "In July… we had our first date there."

"It seems so long ago.."

"A lot has changed since July... Huh?" I was shocked to feel her hand come in contact with mine.

"Yeah.." I turned my hand over and laced our fingers together. "_A lot_ changed.." she took a step forward, pressing our foreheads together. "_What's going on tonight Helga_?"

She let out a long winded sigh and groaned under her breath. "I-…. I know something."

"What do you mean?" I pulled away so I could look into her eyes. "Know what?"

Her cheeks began flushing a light shade of pink and her hands started shaking. "Something.."

"_Tell me.._" my fingers softly traced her jaw line before angling her chin up until she was looking at me. "I'm listening."

"Arnold…" her eyes began glistening in the corners. "I-… I…. oh gosh."

"You…?" I encouraged her to continue.

She seemed to seriously consider whether or not she wanted to tell me what was on her mind. "Arnold.." she attempted to start her speech over again, taking several shaky breaths before starting again. "I-…. I got accepted to Brown." she finished lamely, no enthusiasm in her voice at all.

"Wait… _what?_ BROWN? Brown University? HELGA!" I wrapped my arms around her waist and lifted her off her feet. "This is amazing! Is that what's been on your mind this whole time?"

"Mmhmm.." she remained lifeless in my grasp. "That's it."

"Why didn't you want to tell me?" I set her back on the ground, still keeping her within reaching distance.

"I thought… you… might get upset." she shrugged.

"Upset? Helga!" I held her against me in a tight hug. "I would never be upset. I'm so proud of you! Brown is your dream school."

"Thanks." she smiled probably her first genuine smile the whole night.

"Really Helga.. I'm so proud of you."

"You aren't afraid of what will happen… to _us_?" she grabbed on to my waist, gripping it tightly. "Being separated?"

I really didn't know how to respond to that. I didn't have a legitimately assuring answer that would put her mind at ease. It hit me that _this_ was what was really bothering her… the prospect of getting separated. "…. I don't know what to say, Helga."

"Of course you don't." it almost seemed like she _expected_ that answer. "Now are you gonna go off into some hope-filled speech about how we're going to be together forever as long as we believe in love? Or maybe, just _maybe_ you'll give me an honest answer for once!"

If Helga had put me in shock with her behavior earlier, this would be considered full on cardiac arrest. What did I do to trigger this sort of anger? "What exactly do you want me to say Helga? I'm confused."

She roughly grabbed me by my collar and put us nose to nose. "_The truth._"

"The truth is… _I. Don't. Know_. This is kind of sudden!" If we kept arguing like this, I was liable to spill my guts and make this situation go from bad to worse. "Where is all of this anger coming from anyway?"

"Nowhere." she growled. "Everything is perfect, right? No problems at all… we have no more _secrets_." I felt myself completely freeze. My brain turned to mush and I had no clue what I was supposed to say. I was going to blow it if I opened my mouth. "While you sit there and catch flies with your mouth, I'm getting out of here." she harshly slapped underneath my chin, forcing my unintentionally open mouth shut. "Good night Arnold.."

I felt like my eyes were about to pop out of their sockets from being opened so wide. Out of all the possible scenarios I had thought of in my head, I didn't imagine things going this way. She was already long gone by the time I came to my senses. It was only then that I knew what I had to do to fix things… I had to tell her the truth about _everything_, lay it all out on the table. It was the only fair thing to do now since she was going hundreds of miles away to Rhode Island in the fall. She was going to break up with me… I knew that much already.

I just have to hope she doesn't kill me in the process..

* * *

_**(**One Week Later**)**_

I don't know how it happened or why, but I think in the past week Helga sincerely developed the characteristics of a sociopath. Not only has she cut our communication in half, she always finds an excuse to not see me. It was almost like we were back in fourth grade… she wasn't being herself anymore. Something happened on prom night, something that made her snap and all of her insecurities and general woes seemed to be geared at me. Gerald pointed out the convenience of 'dumping the news on her' while she was in this state and that breaking up with her would be a snap. Dumping Helga when she needed me the most did _not_ sound right to me, I couldn't just walk away knowing something was wrong.

After a week of seclusion from one another and internally debating for several hours, I finally found the courage to call Helga and demand that we meet at her house and speak face to face. An unnerving feeling washed over me while I waited on the front steps of Helgas stoop, I honestly felt like Helga hadn't told me everything on prom night. _Something_ was seriously bothering her other than the fact she was accepted to Brown. When she finally came outside her demeanor was still the same: cold and distant. Instead of greeting me with a hug or kiss, she perched herself on the opposite side of the stoop and crossed her arms hastily in front of her chest. If I didn't know any better I would say that she had grown even more irritated since the last time we were face to face. She also looked like she hadn't slept since the last time I saw her.

"You said you wanted to talk?" she grumbled angrily under her breath. "So talk."

"Did I do something wrong Helga? Ever since prom you've acted like I'm Satan or something… I just want to understand what's going on." I took my chances and moved across the stoop and sat next to her. She flinched slightly, but didn't move from her spot. "Please Helga.. I'm worried about you."

She suddenly made a very apparent effort to slide away from me. "I don't know what you're talking about football head. I'm _peachy. _And since when do you worry about me?"

"How can you even ask me that?" I shook my head angrily "You know what? No.. I'm not feeding into this. Don't even try it… don't act like you did when we were kids. I thought we were past all that ridiculous behavior?"

"I don't know why you're bugging me about this _Arnold_." her voice seethed. "Your problems seem to be much worse than mine."

My brow furrowed in confusion "Huh?"

"Lets try something new for once? Lets quit dancing around the subject, I'm tired of it okay?" she stood up, fists clenched at her sides. "Why don't you just break up with me like you and tall hair boy have been planning and get it out of your system already?"

Consider my mind completely blown. My heartbeat had never felt so erratic as it did in that very moment. How did she find out about my conversations with Gerald? How was I supposed to explain it so she didn't rip my man parts off? Oh God… this was not what I had planned!

"Wha-?… how?…. I uh-… oh God." my face began turning a soft shade of red and beads of sweat began forming at my hairline.

"Keep your verbal diarrhea to yourself you yutz. I heard you and Gerald plotting on prom night."

"Prom night?" a harsh reality slammed into me. She wasn't upset about Brown.. That wasn't it at all. She heard the conversation on the other side of the door and didn't say a word about it. "Look, I-"

"I don't want to hear it, okay? I heard enough that night to know that you're done with this relationship."

"Hear me out!" I followed her earlier actions and stood up. "There's a reason I was freaking out so badly.."

"Did you cheat on me?" her voice softened into a very serious tone.

"WHAT? God no! I love you Helga. I wouldn't do that to you." I reached my hand out to grab hers. "I'll tell you what's going on if you promise to _listen _before you blow up." I pointed back to our spot on the stoop and she grudgingly sat back down. My head was still spinning when I sat down beside her, I felt like I was going to be sick. I've had this conversation with Helga dozens of times in my dreams, but being face to face with her was two hundred times more terrifying. This was my moment of truth…

"Well?" she hissed.

"Stop it! I'm trying to gather my thoughts here.." I hunched over with my face in my palms, breathing deeply for several seconds. "It all started a little over a year ago… before we started dating."

"IS IT RHONDA?" she grabbed the collar of my shirt and shook me roughly. "I'll kill you both!"

"Helga Geraldine Pataki!" I slapped her hands off of my collar. "Get a grip for cripes sake! There's NO other girl!"

"Whatever football head. Just tell me your big friggin secret." she leaned against the wall and straddled the side of the stoop.

"I had been looking into a particular interest of mine for several months on the internet." I paused, knowing Helga was thinking I meant porn. Surprisingly she didn't say a word. "I wrote an extremely long letter to R.M.S.L. explaining my proposition to them. We exchanged several letter over the next few months and-"

"What's 'R.M.S.L.' Arnold?"

"Rescue Mission of San Lorenzo." I sighed. "They're a private group of people based in San Lorenzo who have basically taken over the responsibilities that my parents used to have. They provide help to the green eyed people by giving them medicine and any other things they need. It's a very secretive process, the green eyed people are never seen."

"So what happened?" she moved from her spot against the wall and moved closer to me.

"I asked them if they could help me."

"_Find your parents_.." she covered her mouth to contain her gasp. "Arnold.."

"They stressed how important it was that I understood there's a high chance my parents have been dead since they went missing… and I told them that I knew they were most likely long gone." Helgas arm suddenly wrapped around my midsection, hugging herself against me. "But this is something I have to do in order to feel complete. I _need_ to know what happened to them, and the jungles of San Lorenzo hold the key. I begged them to help me navigate the jungle in hopes of finally putting my mind at ease… and maybe _just_ maybe I could put my parents to rest."

"They agreed to help… didn't they?"

"They sent me some flight schedules and a map of San Lorenzo this past January. I went and got my passport a few days after that."

"Wow.. Arnold that's-" she cut herself off mid sentence…my words must have suddenly sunken in. "Wait…" she pulled away. "Did you just say _January_? As in January of THIS YEAR?"

"Yeah.." I mentally prepared myself for a blow to the face or stomach, but nothing came.

"Have you bought a plane ticket already?"

"In February." I winced.

"You-… You son of a bitch!" her hand slapped my cheek with vigor. "Are you an idiot?"

I held my hand to my cheek and tried to avoid her unwavering stream of blows to the face. "Helga! Stop! OUCH!"

"You are a…" she slapped the other cheek just as hard as she had done to the other one "Stupid…" another slap. "Thoughtless..." a kick to my shin "USER!" she pushed my shoulders and nearly knocked me off the side of the stoop. "You bought a ticket to San Lorenzo without telling me and _THEN_ you decide you want to sleep with me? Was that your god damn parting gift or what?"

"Helga! Would you stop smacking me around and let me finish my story? You said you would!" my face felt like it had just been hit with a sledgehammer.

"I can't even look at you right now." she went to the other side of the stoop and sat down facing away from me.

"I bought that ticket in early February… on a whim really. I had considered waiting longer but something inside told me I shouldn't wait any longer… so I bought it. And then everything changed again when we went out on valentines day." my mind flashed back to the picture inside her new locket that was taken that night. "We went to the beach to watch the sunset… just you and me. I remember looking at you during the last rays of daylight and thinking '_I'm in love with her_', and I knew every sunrise and sunset after that would never be the same again… a week later I picked out your locket and had it inscribed."

She looked over her shoulder and seemed to soften up a little. "That's when you fell in love with me?"

"I'll never forget that moment Helga." I smiled softly. "On the night of your birthday I wanted to tell you about San Lorenzo. When I brought you inside instead of cleaning up… I was going to get the ticket and confess about everything. But being there with you and finally confessing my real feelings…. I don't know what happened. It's like everything faded away, and all I saw was you… San Lorenzo ceased to exist."

"So sex became more important to you than telling me you were _leaving?_" she still wouldn't turn back around to face me.

"It wasn't about sex Helga, and you know it. That night meant everything to both of us."

"It was in vain!" She turned around angrily. "You had sex with me KNOWING you were leaving! Do you know how much that hurts? You didn't…" she took a deep breath. "You didn't give me the option of making up my own mind. We had sex under false pretenses."

"I made a mistake Helga… and I know that. Its haunted me ever since it happened. The morning after, I almost shredded the ticket and called the whole thing off. I couldn't bare the thought of hurting you like this." I got up and knelt down in front of her. "You're my girl… I love you."

"You don't do this to someone you love." she turned her head away.

At that moment I felt like possibly _the _worth human being on the planet. She was right… I was a sick jerk who had sex with her at the worst possible time. I kept things to myself that could effect everything, and now it's come back to hurt us both. "Helga?" my hand gently touched the side of her face. "If you asked me to stay…. I would."

She sharply turned her head back, a horrified expression etched on her face. "ask you… to _stay_? Are you seriously saying this? Arnold… I may be extremely disappointed in you right now, but I could _never_ ask you to give this opportunity up. Your parents mean a lot to you… and this is your destiny…. Without me."

"But-"

"But nothing!" her hand covered my mouth before I could object any further. "You're going to San Lorenzo… and I'm going to Brown University. The fates have made their decision this time Arnold… and you made yours when you bought your ticket and then decided to sleep with me. This is how it's supposed to be.."

"So what does this mean?" the fate that I had only imagined until now was coming true. "We're breaking up?"

"It would make things easier… for both of us." she looked down at her shoes, avoiding my pained gaze.

"I want you to understand that I love you Helga… and that I never wanted things to end like this." I was doing my best to not let any tears form in my eyes. "You're my best friend.."

A stray tear fell from her eye and rolled down her cheek. "I'll always love you Arnold… _Until the end of forever._" she pulled her locket out of her shirt, attempting to hand it to me.

"No.. it's yours." I covered her hand, clasping her fingers around the locket.

"So I guess this is really it?" a few more tears began falling down her cheeks. I could tell she was trying her hardest not to completely lose it.

"I'm so sorry Helga… I don't know if you'll ever forgive me, but-" she suddenly fell into my lap and kissed me in the midst of her sobs. I slowly pulled away from her mouth and held her in my arms, letting her cry into my shoulder. We both knew the significance of this moment in our lives.. It was the last time it could ever be like this between us.

We had officially broken up.

* * *

**I know, I know! Boooooooooo! Lol. This was all angst! Trust me, I'm not a fan of it either. And some of you may be thinking "WFT?" right now because of their break up, but there's no need to get upset! Lol.. There's still more chapters ;) would I leave you hanging? (besides those pesky cliffhangers?) lmao! Stay tuned for chapter 19 my friends. It'll be along soon!**

**XOXO- ThriLLer89**


	19. Maybe tomorrow

**Can you all believe this monstrosity is almost 20 chapters long? Lol. When I first started out I saw this going somewhere **_**completely **_**different, and now I couldn't be happier with the direction the storyline is heading. I feel honored that you all enjoy the story and find it comforting to be close to these characters again, I feel the same way! Writing this story has been an adventure and I'm glad I got to share it with you.**

**Side note- in the story, Helga and Arnold broke up in early May (in case anyone was confused) lol.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold!**

* * *

_**(**One Month Later**)-**_** June**

**Helgas POV:**

I'll never forget the first time my classmates had discovered of me and Arnolds untimely demise. It was Wednesday morning and I had just arrived at school on the community bus with the other underclassmen. It was hard enough receiving awkward stares from the kids on the bus, I could only imagine how our friends were going to act. Arnold and I had become a well known fixture on campus, a 'class couple' if you will. Having to explain our situation made my stomach churn. I wasn't ready to face it. There was a part of me that never would be, breaking up with Arnold is the absolute last thing I would ever want to do… but I guess fate has other ideas. The first person to approach me that morning was Nadine. She almost instantly began questioning me why I was taking the bus… and asking where Arnold was. It had been less than twenty four hours ago that I was in a relationship with the love of my life, I was only at school because I couldn't stand being all alone in my room with my lingering thoughts. I would have given _anything_ to be invisible at that moment and to completely ignore Nadines questions. I shamefully looked away and muttered that we had broken up, leaving her standing there in a fog of confusion. By the time lunch rolled around everyone had heard about me and Arnold, several of the girls had taken special interest in me and began offering to take me to lunch in an attempt to 'comfort me in my time of need'. I didn't need food, I didn't need comforting. I needed _Arnold_. I wanted him to be my practically perfect boyfriend again. Having to think about going on without him made me sick. Fortunately Phoebe was able to fend the girls off of me and allow me to breathe without their constant halfhearted attempts at offering me useless comfort. Phoebe offered to eat lunch together in the patio behind the cafeteria to escape the onlookers who were still in search of my impending nervous breakdown. I reluctantly agreed, mostly in fear of running into Arnold anywhere else. We had yet to see each other for almost a whole school day, I was relieved and slightly irritated at the same time… he was avoiding me as much as I was avoiding him.

Cut to a month later and we're still in this same stupid routine. I've seen him a few times, sure… but we haven't been closer than a few hundred yards of each other. We both made a very conscious effort to just… stay away. Seeing one another was painful enough. Our high school graduation was coming up in about 72 hours, any normal person would be on cloud nine and celebrating with their friends. I on the other hand had finally forced myself into the seclusion of my bedroom for the duration of my high school social life. I heard through the grapevine that a party was being held at Rhondas tonight, a 'pre graduation' soirée of sorts. Phoebe extended an invitation to me which I kindly declined, anticipating another night of mindlessly staring into space and drowning myself in self pity while cursing this thing they call love. To make matters worse, three days after our breakup during one of my many cleaning binges I discovered that I still had one of Arnolds favorite plaid button up shirts that had been thrown on my floor during one of our many make out sessions.… _ugh_…. I couldn't think about it without getting weepy again. I'm more than ashamed to admit that I wear it to bed every night, soaking up every bit of his scent that my nose can possibly detect. It's almost like I can feel his warmth enveloping me like his arms used to when we would snuggle. Sometimes I would wake up in the middle of the night reaching out for him before sadly realizing he wasn't there… and he wasn't coming back. I hated feeling alone again, it was like being trapped in the lonely state of my childhood, which looking back on I realize it's my own personal hell. Arnold had been my escape from the extreme emptiness that always seemed to find me as a child. Without him I was just an empty shell, I always believed I needed him to ignite my fire in order to keep me alive…

"Keep it together Pataki, you're driving yourself insane." I pulled myself up from the mattress and sat on the end of the bed, staring out the window that Arnold would frequently use as his entrance. "Stop thinking about it." I vigorously shook my head. "Wait…. Why the _hell_ am I talking to myself?"

_Psycho psycho PSYCHO._

"UGH!" I grunted and began kicking angrily at nothing in particular. "I need air. Yeah.. Air!" my hands instinctively grabbed the bottom of the window and cracked it open slightly. Upon further inspection I discovered smudges at the bottom of the window. They were undoubtedly old fingerprints left by one of Arnolds many visits here. "_Arnold_.." I let out a breathy whisper. "This is all I have left of you my love… old distorted fingerprints." I reached out and put my index finger on top of one of his fingerprints, hoping it would provide some sort of comfort I was unable to achieve by myself. All I felt was cold glass against the pad of my finger and an emptiness that grew deeper with each second that passed. "What's WRONG with me?" I hastily removed my finger. "A fingerprint? _Really_? Get it together Helga… You aren't nine anymore…" I paused a moment before harshly slapping my forehead. "UGH! QUIT TALKING TO YOURSELF!"

"_Helga_?" Miriam slurred on the other side of the door. "Are you okay? We heard shouting." she must have just started in on one of her nightly smoothie binges, by midnight she wouldn't even be able to hear an elephant doing cartwheels over broken glass.

"I'm fine _mom._" I fell back against the mattress, wrapping myself snugly in Arnolds shirt and taking a long drag of his glorious scent… one that was slowly fading away with time. "I have to get my mind off of this." I concluded.

I had yet to start filling out my paperwork for Brown and the deadline would be coming up this summer. I needed to apply for residency at the dorms and apply for my classes, along with sending a healthy sized check courtesy of Big Bob himself who was _more_ than happy to finally be rid of his genetic blemish. The paperwork I had received over the past month had racked up to about six envelopes of nothing but financial, residency and class forms. It would probably take several days just to get through half of them!

"Perfect." I sighed. "A distraction from this terrible reality which haunts me so!" Before I could even finish filling out the first few lines of the paperwork my mind involuntarily went to the shirt that still hung loosely over my frame which seemed to be radiating _his_ scent towards my nose every few seconds and also my sacred heart shaped locket that resides in my bedside drawer. "Who am I kidding?" I groaned. "Everything comes back to _him_.."

I hated being like this. Feeling weak and listless had began making me feel something inside myself that I haven't felt for a long time… _anger_. Being with Arnold had tamed the spiteful brash person I once was, when I was dating him I was usually in an above normal mood and didn't let hardly anything get to me. But now? Now _everything_ got to me… I feel like I'm always either weepy or disengaged. It was almost like I was becoming bipolar, and while outwardly I appeared broken and fragile, on the inside I was growing more and more irritated with myself. I didn't want to be this emotional wreck anymore. I didn't want to rely on Arnold to provide my happiness. The decision for us to break up will probably haunt me for the rest of my days… and yet in many ways it finally freed me from my fantasy and brought me back to earth. I knew I made the right choice.. But it doesn't make my life any easier. In my mind I wanted my old life back.

"No you don't." my fist slammed into the desk. "You don't need him.."

_Why the heck do I keep talking to myself? Ugh.. GET BACK TO WORK! Crimeny._

I forced myself to focus back on the task at hand, subconsciously fiddling with my pen. "Hmm…Do I want to major in English or Political science?"

_Does it really matter anymore? You're still going to be alone._

"Ooookay Helga old girl... That's enough of that!" I tossed all the paperwork into a drawer. "I have to get out of here."

But where on earth would I go? The only event going on was the raging keg party at Rhondas. _Arnold_ would probably be there. "I'll call Phoebe!" I jumped from my chair and grabbed my house phone and dialed Phoebes cell phone number.

"_Helga? What's going on? Are you okay?"_ she shouted over the loud bass of the music.

"I'm fine Phoebs.. Why wouldn't I be?-" I sighed at the realization of her worried tone. "Look, I just wanted to know if Arnold showed up at Rhondas tonight…" my voice cracked slightly at the mention of Arnold.

"_Oh.._" I could hear a door closing in the distance as she entered a quiet room. "_He showed up just a little while ago-"_

"Oh.." I grabbed the collar of his shirt and held it against my nose for a moment. Of course he had to be at the one place I considered going to. _Damn bastard_. "Did he ask about me?" even I realized how stupid of a question that was. I was starting to sound like a desperate loon..

"_No… I'm sorry Helga…"_ she squeaked, fearing my response.

"It's fine." I scoffed. "He forgot I existed. No big deal… like I ever think about him!" a small nervous chuckled escaped before I could stop it. Both of us knew how insane I was when it came to Arnold, there was no denying it. She's dealt with my neurosis since our childhood. After a good thirty seconds of silence I cleared my throat, "I think I'm going to come by."

"_Helga.._" she sighed. "_Are you certain that's the most logical option right now? It's only been a month and I don't want you to get hurt, or-"_

"I'll be _fine_." I hissed in the midst of digging through my clothes for a pair of clean jeans. "I'm coming to see you anyway Phoebs. Maybe we can ditch the party and go to the pier like we used to in junior high! We always loved doing that." during my mindless babbling the only thought on my mind was the flaxen haired angel in attendance at Rhondas party, and how much I wished I could be the girl clinging on to his arm at that very moment. "It'll be fun!" I said mostly for my benefit. I needed to believe there was happiness out there for me somewhere.

"_So you don't want to come to the party?"_ she clarified. "_You want to go do something together?_"

"Yeah Phoebe! I miss you. We haven't hung out one on one in months." I untied my ribbon and tossed it hastily to the floor along with his button up plaid shirt, grabbing a pink t-shirt and slipping it over my head along with a hooded sweatshirt. "What do you say Phoebs?" I pulled the hood over my head, concealing my hair.

"_Well…_" she paused. "_okay Helga… I'll meet you in front of Rhondas. Are you on your way now?_"

"Yep." I paused in front of my full-length mirror and studied my appearance. I looked tired and washed out, and somewhat like a bum. _Fan-frickin-tastic.._ "See you in a bit Phoebs."

As I headed towards Rhondas I took the back roads, having no intentions of being seen when I got there. Phoebe would be out front waiting for me, and I would be able to go inside the house through the back… its not like _seeing_ him for a second would hurt… right? And after I spy on- I mean _see_ him I could pull around up front and Phoebe would be none the wiser. It was innocent enough, and nobody would get hurt. Putting my plan into effect, I was able to park on the street behind Rhondas place and slither my way through our fellow classmates unnoticed with the help of my sweatshirt. I felt a little ridiculous for going to such great lengths just to _see_ him… but he was worth it. Blaring music instantly filled my ears as I entered the Lloyd dwelling, several of our classmates were drunkenly dancing in the 'foyer' as Rhonda would say, and several others were standing around and talking amongst themselves. Nobody seemed to notice as I made my way through the masses in search of my goal. I perched myself at the bottom of the staircase and scanned the living room and finally spotted him off in the corner with Gerald. Both of them were nursing bottles of water and animatedly talking to Stinky and Sid, laughing occasionally.

_At least he's happy._

It almost hurt that he wasn't visibly distraught. I suppose I could understand his need to move on, but it didn't hurt any less that he wasn't feeling my level of angst. "_I should be happy for him_" I whispered aloud. "_He'll be okay.._"

Just as I made my move to leave and meet up with Phoebe… "Helga? What are you doing here?" a voice came from behind me.

"Crimeny!" I screeched, nearly falling off the step. Behind me stood Rhonda with a confused expression. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"Sorry." she stepped down to my level. "When did you get here anyway? Did you know Arnold was here?" her eyebrow raised slightly.

"Oh, he is?" I added a hint of innocence to my voice, playing dumb. "I didn't notice.."

"Right." she smirked. "I know what you're doing! You're a clever one Miss Pataki."

My heart rate increased slightly as I descended the last step. "Wh-… what are you talking about?"

"You came by to give Arnold a little thing us ladies like to call 'dumpers remorse'. It's a classic!" she studied my attire before giving me a disapproving 'tsk-tsk' and tugging on my sweatshirt. "Oh no no, NO. The ensemble is all _wrong_. Are you trying to make him miss you, or pity you? Bum couture isn't exactly in _style_ Helga." she gave me a once over before grabbing my wrist. "We need to fix this, _now_!"

_How the hell do I keep getting myself into these messes?_

By the time Rhonda got her claws into me, there was no escaping. I had to call Phoebe and tell her to meet me in the princesses room, informing her of Rhondas psychotic plan. Rhonda was insistent that I '_show Arnold what he'll be missing_' and to knock the pants off of him. In a way the idea sort of thrilled me, but in reality I didn't want his attention because of some stupid mind game that a desperate woman invented hundreds of years ago. Arnold and I had to go our separate ways, and that was that. I should have just said no to this whole crazy scheme.. Instead of following my heart, I wound up in a skin tight emerald green dress embossed with sparkles. I looked like a leprechaun had barfed on me.

"I don't know about this princess." I stood next to Phoebe and glanced at myself in the mirror. "This isn't a good idea. I look ridiculous."

"Helga, right now you're a 10. Arnold is going to rue the day he let you slip away!" she circled around us and stared at our reflections in the mirror. "Remember what we discussed: boys want what they can't have. And trust me, when he sees you like _this_ he's going to feel like the biggest jerk in the world."

"Rhonda, this isn't a good idea. Not at all.." Phoebe shook her head solemnly. "This isn't a proper solution for a break up."

"I don't think I can do this." I grimaced at my appearance. "Mind games aren't my forte. I prefer punching people."

"Hurt him in a different way." Rhonda smirked. "Trust me, this will hurt much worse."

_I don't want to hurt him…_

"I can't." I turned away from the mirror. "_I love him_.."

"Just try it Helga. Humor me for five minutes! If you still feel uncomfortable then you can put your hobo gear back on and continue to watch him from afar. Just go downstairs and _try_!" she grabbed my hand and walked us to her bedroom door. "Come on!"

"Helga, you don't have to do this!" Phoebe rushed over and grabbed my other hand. "You're one of the smartest people I know… you're better than this."

It was a classic devil and angel on my shoulder situation. Phoebe was right, I knew that much… but a part of me wanted to see him miss me… to miss _us. _The need was overwhelming, but in my heart I knew that driving Arnold nuts with a sexy dress wasn't the solution for my broken heart. I had to move on… it was fate.

I released both of their hands and sighed. "Lets get out of here Phoebs… sorry princess, this," I pointed to the dress. "…just isn't my style." Phoebe let out a sigh of relief and grinned, while Rhonda shook her head disapprovingly.

"Okay Helga.. But don't say I never tried." she grabbed my clothes from her bed and tossed them to me. "Happy stalking!" with that she waved us off and left the room.

"I wonder if she's pissed?" I snickered, unzipping the back of the dress.

"Helga, do you mind if I head downstairs to speak to Gerald? He doesn't know I'm still here."

"Sure Phoebs. We can meet up at the car. I'll be down in ten" I took a makeup removing pad and began furiously rubbing my face in front of the mirror. The sound of the door closing behind her echoed through the silence of the bedroom. Just like the past month, I was all alone again. I tossed the makeup remover in the trashcan and grabbed another one, taking a moment to see my appearance. "Look at you.." I scoffed, glaring into my mascara smeared eyes. "What were you thinking? Like Arnold would care if I was dressed like _this_." the unzipped dress sat loosely around my waist and my hair hung over my shoulders. I pulled the dress off and slipped my pants back on. "Stupid dress" I kicked it harshly across the room. A small rhythmic knock suddenly echoed from the other side of the door. "What is it Phoebs?" I turned my attention back to my reflection and began rubbing another makeup removing pad over my eyes. The sound of the door opening caused me to remove the pad from my eyes. My vision was slightly distorted from the contact with my eyes and all I could see was a blur.

"Hey.." the sound of Arnolds voice filled my ears and I let out an ear piercing scream. "Whoa! Calm down!" his blurry shadow took a step closer.

"What the hell football head? GET OUT!" I grabbed my shirt off the chair and hastily shoved it over my head. As my vision became a little clearer I could finally see him standing less than six feet away from me. "What are you doing? Didn't I just say to get out?"

His faced showed no real emotion besides curiosity, and a slight hint of amusement. "What are you doing in here?"

"None of your beeswax bucko!" I hissed. When he showed no sign of leaving my face softened a little. "You should leave"

"Helga.." he sighed. "Is it really going to be like this? Do you _want_ it to be like this between us?" looking into his perfect green eyes was causing me to feel weak, just like I kept fearing it would when it finally happened. It had been a month since I was this close to him… it was killing me that I couldn't reach out and touch him.

I pulled my hair into a ponytail and turned back towards the mirror and decided to avoid the question completely. "How did you know I was here anyway?" it became my goal to avoid his gaze, and to get him away from me before I do something insane… like beg for him back.

I suddenly felt his body heat directly behind me. When I looked at my reflection, he was standing just mere inches from me. "_Because I know you_" his tone lowered to almost a whisper. "_And your tricks._"

"Who said anything about tricks?" my eyes narrowed. "And how about stepping away from me? You're my ex, and this isn't exactly 'friends' territory" I slipped away from him and put some distance between us.

"Sorry.." a slight blush appeared on his cheeks.

"You shouldn't have come up here." I was trying my best to stay stern and not crack. I didn't want him to know how much I missed the sound of his voice.. Or the smell of his shampoo.

"We haven't spoken in over a month." he sat down in the chair in front of the vanity. "I was worried about you.."

_Don't swoon, don't swoon…._

"You didn't exactly try and talk to me either." I held my ground.

"I thought you hated me!" he tossed his hands up in frustration.

"In a way… _I do_." I grabbed my sweatshirt and headed for the door so I could make a quick exit. "You broke my heart football head."

"I'm sorry Helga." his gaze drifted to the floor. "I never meant for this to happen.."

Every part of me wanted to run over to him and hold him for the rest of my life and _never_ let go… but my legs stayed firmly planted to the carpet, and my hand stayed on the door knob. "But you _let_ this happen Arnold… you blew it, and now we're over. You made your choice all those months ago… and now I've made mine." I finally got the strength to open the door. "Goodbye Arnold… and good luck in San Lorenzo. I really hope you find what you're looking for." and with one final glance in his direction, I left.

I practically sprinted downstairs, dodging my fellow classmates in hopes they wouldn't notice the tears streaming down my cheeks. In a way this goodbye between us was harder than the one on my stoop… this one seemed… _final_. Our time had run out, and he was really going to be leaving the country. There were no more second chances for us.

"Helga! Wait!" Rhonda called out to me as I ran past her in a flurry. "Are you okay?" she was able to stop me before I grabbed the doorknob. "Jesus! What happened?"

"I'm _fine _princess... I was just leaving." I didn't feel like offering any other explanation for my frazzled state. "See ya.."

As I reached Phoebe and collapsed into her arms in frantic tears, the only thing I could think was… For the first time in my life I would give anything to truly be invisible.

* * *

_**(**Graduation Night**)**_

I always imagined my high school graduation being some monumental celebration. I imagined being surrounded by the people I cared about, I wanted what pretty much _everyone_ wants; to feel accomplished. As the multi-colored graduation caps fell from the sky and the silly string flew over our heads, I felt neither proud OR accomplished. The ceremony was boring… speech after speech from the class braniacs (including Phoebe), and everyone getting a standing ovation from their family members as their names were called. I didn't get such a luxury when my name was called. The only cheers I got were from the girls I grew up with, and a halfhearted clap from Arnold. To say I was embarrassed would be an understatement. I knew Bob and Miriam were most likely not going to show up, but the actualization of their absence was like receiving a slap to the face. When the fireworks exploded above us, the memory of my first date with Arnold replayed in my mind and I wondered if he was thinking about the same thing. As the parents began storming the football field to greet the graduates I moved out of the way so I could congratulate Phoebe and get the heck out of there. By the time I found her she was already surrounded by hers and Geralds families, both rapidly taking photos of the happy couple.

"_Forget it_.." I muttered.

I went up in the bleachers of the stadium to watch the happy people celebrate. Everyone seemed so joyous posing for pictures with their friends and families and holding up their diplomas with pride. I glanced at my own diploma which was resting in my lap. In fancy cursive letters '_Helga Geraldine Pataki_' were etched on to the paper. I worked for this one piece of paper for 12 years… 12 _long_ years. What more did I have to show for it?… nothing. I spent my youth believing that a high school diploma would be my ticket out of Hillwood, but I've quickly learned that it takes more than that one piece of paper to change your fate. It takes a lot of green, a lot of brains and a lot of connections.

"_Smile Shortman! And Pookie get away from those people! You don't even know them!"_ the sound of Arnolds grandpa in the distance made me perk up slightly… though I couldn't see them, I felt comforted knowing Arnold was close by.

_Maybe one graduation hug wouldn't hurt-_

"Helga!" Phoebe ran up the set of stairs that led to my bleacher.

"_Damn.._" I muttered.

"There you are! I was looking for you." she plopped down next to me and observed what I had previously been watching. "I'm sorry about your parents, Helga.."

"It's fine Phoebs.. I expected no less." I paid close attention to the crowds to see if I could catch a glimpse of Arnold.

"Do you mind taking a few pictures with me for my parents?" a hopefulness lingered in her voice.

"Sure" I sighed.

We went back down on to the field and located her parents who promptly began photographing and congratulating us on our 'achievement'. I smiled and thanked them as politely as I could muster while simultaneously praying a meteorite would fall from the heavens and strike me down, ending this torture.

"Phoebe!" Gerald poked his head through a group of people. "You ready to-"

_Kill me now._

"Well well… Helga Pataki." he fully emerged from the curtain of people. "Loving the robe."

"You're wearing one too, moron." I spat.

His eyes narrowed and just before he was able to retort Phoebe intervened. "I'll be ready in a minute, just let me talk to Helga for a sec." I had to give Phoebe credit, she had patience and a heart of gold for sticking with Gerald for all these years.

"Gerald, did you find Phoe-" Arnold emerged from the same place Gerald had, freezing completely when he saw me. "….be?"

Gerald had seemed to find some perverse pleasure in this awkward encounter, a large grin was plastered on his face as he awaited some type of Jerry Springer outburst. The four of us didn't have the slightest inkling of what we were supposed to do in this situation. Arnold kept desperately looking over to Gerald in search of an escape, and Phoebe looked over at me sympathetically while Gerald got his jollies off watching me squirm.

"Well.." I loudly cleared my throat. "I'd love to stick around for this awkward silence, but I have some _business_ to attend to. And so, I bid you adieu." I slowly began backing away "Later Phoebs, tall hair boy….._"_ Arnold finally made eye contact with me expecting a goodbye, instead I harshly turned away and said nothing more.

_Suck on that, football head_.

Big Bob and Miriam as I expected, had no clue my graduation had taken place that night. When I walked through the front door they both looked at me awkwardly and asked why I was wearing a robe. It took every ounce of strength to abstain from screaming at the top of my lungs that they were the biggest idiots on the planet. Instead I quietly informed them that I joined a cult, to which they simply nodded and continued on with their evening rituals. I flicked the light on in my bedroom and plopped down face first into my mattress. Now that graduation was over, all I wanted was to go into a deep sleep and wake up at Brown University and all my problems would magically have faded away.

"_Oh dammit.._" I mumbled into the sheets.

I had yet to finish my Brown paperwork, the deadline was quickly approaching within the next month and I couldn't focus longer than five minutes. I grudgingly sat up and went to my desk to retrieve the papers. If I didn't get started on them I would probably _never_ do them, then I would miss my shot and end up as useless as Miriam. I shuddered at the mere thought.

"Okay Helga old girl… pick your major…" picking a major was one of the biggest steps in college, one that I avoided long enough. "Okay.." I sighed. "… Political Science!" I snapped my fingers in assurance before finding the paper that would declare my major. I scribbled down my major, and there it was in black and white. Of course I could always change it later on, but I always wanted my college major to be something I _knew_ I was meant for. I didn't want to have to change it.

_I hate change_..

"Stop…" I warned my internal thoughts that always seemed to plague me while working on my college paperwork. "Focus."

For the first time in over a month I was able to focus long enough to fill out my class schedule for the first semester. It was mainly the required freshman courses, but at least I was making progress. It was well past midnight but I still had another four forms to fill out to make the schedule complete. "_High school course history?_" I read the question aloud. "Crimeny, do they want to know what toilet paper I use too?"

_You're talking to yourself again._

"I realize this." I paused a moment before my palm collided with my forehead. My mind must really be slipping lately. Not only do I talk out loud to myself, but now I'm starting to answer my internal thoughts aloud. As I finally turned my fickle attention span back on my paperwork, a small ticking sound began echoing through the room periodically. At first it was every few minutes, then it became every few seconds. It wasn't helping, to say the least. "What the heck is that?" I growled, growing more and more irritated with every tap. I got up from my chair and waited for the tapping noise to start again so I could find out where it was coming from. With a final tap I finally realized where it was coming from… the fire escape window. I raced over to it and paused before slowly opening the curtain. Nobody was there, but to my surprise a white envelope was taped to the window… along with a fresh set of finger prints. I opened the window and quickly grabbed the note, '_Helga_' was written on the front. In the distance down the street I could vaguely see a set of tail lights fading into the night. "_Arnold…_" I whispered. Why on earth would he come here in the middle of the night to climb my fire escape with a note? I closed the window and locked it before plopping back down on my bed with Arnolds note. I wasted no time before ripping the envelope open and producing its contents… a letter.

'_Helga,_

_You're probably surprised that I'm writing a letter, I know I'm not the articulate one… But I don't know how else to get through to you. I'm honestly not very sure what I'm supposed to say anymore. Everything I've done lately seems to anger you and put even more distance between us. I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am that you got hurt because of __me__… it's killing me inside more than you'll ever know. I've always been the 'go to' guy who fixes others problems, and now that I'm the person who needs help.. I don't know who to turn to. If I could, I would do anything to make you happy again Helga. I never wanted us to end like this. I pictured us together, always… I didn't see an end. But what you said that night at Rhonda's?… you were right; I blew it. I got caught up in falling in love with you, and I forgot the most important part of love… honesty. You may never forgive me for breaking your heart, and I couldn't even ask you to. I need to forgive myself before asking it of you._

_Before you crumble this letter and throw it away, screaming 'SCREW YOU FOOTBALL HEAD' (I know you..). I have to tell you the real reason I'm wring this letter to you. Helga, I'm leaving for San Lorenzo in two weeks. Out of everyone in Hillwood you are the one person I would really like to say goodbye to face to face. I understand you might not be ready to say goodbye, and frankly neither am I. When I made these plans I never thought saying goodbye would be harder than the actual journey I was embarking on. I hope you understand that I still love you Helga, and a part of me always will. No matter how many miles and continents are put between us, you'll always be right beside me when the rain falls or the stars shine above us._

_Until I leave, my window will always be open.. I hope to see you soon._

_~Arnold.'_

I whimpered slightly at the conclusion of his letter, wiping a few stray tears from my eyes. I wanted to completely melt into a puddle of mushy pudding, but strangely enough I didn't. In actuality, I was angry. It was unexplainable and not even I understood it.. But I was livid. I wanted to throw a chair through the window and scream. Instead, I sat at the edge of my bed with his letter held firmly in my hands, wondering why I was on the verge of going insane with rage. I let out a shallow breath and put the letter back in its envelope. "_Goodbye Arnold_.." and with that I folded the envelope in half and tossed it in the trashcan.

* * *

_**(**Two Weeks Later**)**_

Five papers. That was all I had left to fill out before mailing off a gigantic manila envelope that contained a big part of my future. I was thrilled that I was almost finished… and terrified at the same time. This next chapter of my life is probably one of the most important, it decides nearly everything. I've been anticipating leaving the Pataki household since I was able to think logically, and my time was finally going to come this fall. All the things I worked so hard for were finally materializing right before my eyes.

"_Olga_!" Big Bob pounded on the other side of my door.

"WHAT?"

"_You've got someone on the phone! Hurry it up_."

I glanced over at my cell phone, which was currently being used as a paperweight. Since graduation night I had kept it off, cutting ties with the outside world and rarely left the house for anything. I had no desire to..

"I got it Bob!" I hissed, grabbing the phone in my room. "What?" somewhere along the way I guess my manners must have dissipated as well.

"_Helga?_" Phoebes meek voice came from the receiver. "_Are you okay? I've been trying to call your cell for days._"

"I'm fabulous Phoebs. How are _you_?" I knew I was being a jerk towards the one person I had left, but my attitude was getting the better of me.

"_Helga.. Come on. You need to talk about this. I'm worried about you!_"

"Talk about what?" I scoffed. "I've just been busy Phoebe. I'm finishing up my Brown University paperwork while simultaneously looking for a job in Providence, it isn't exactly _easy_ to call every day to check on you!"

One of the many perks of being friends with Phoebe Heyerdahl; she doesn't frustrate easily, nor does she give up. It's also one of her biggest downfalls.. "_Helga…_" she sighed. "_I know you know about today. Gerald told me about the letter.._"

"If that's all you called to talk about, then I believe this conversation is over." I held my finger over the 'end call' button, prepared to strike at a moments notice.

"_No, that's not all. I've just genuinely been worried about you. You didn't show up at Geralds party on graduation night, and you haven't taken any of my calls for the past two weeks. I'm leaving next month and I just wanted to spend some time with you before I go to Florida._"

_Oh geez… a guilt trip._

"Phoebs.." my voice finally softened. "I'm sorry, okay? I've honestly been preoccupied with the whole college thing… and yes, I'm avoiding the whole Arnold thing too. But _please_ don't try and change my mind about seeing him. I just can't do it.." The idea of being alone in a room with Arnold with nothing but our lingering feelings was a recipe for disaster. Saying goodbye to him would be worse than losing a limb. I decided several weeks ago that while I'm a Brown, Arnold never existed, my past, _everything_. It was the only way I could move on with my life and finally become a normal functioning human being.

"_I would never force you to do something you weren't ready for, you know that Helga. But…_" she paused a moment before continuing. "_His flight is taking off in less than four hours, and I just wanted you to know that he has repeatedly asked me if I've seen or talked to you lately. He's worried too Helga.._"

_Scratch that, a HUGE guilt trip.._

"Look, I don't think an emotional goodbye between two former lovers in the middle of an airport is such a good idea. It just screams Hollywood cliché. I'll stick with my paperwork and misery to keep me company. But thanks for telling me Phoebs.."

An awkward silence deadened both ends of the phone. "_…. okay Helga._" she almost sounded disappointed. "_Call me sometime?_"

"Sure."

We said our goodbyes and hung up, leaving me to stew in my thoughts. It was almost like she knew planting the idea of Arnolds departure in my mind was going to force me to face my relationship problems. Because now all I could think about was Arnold and that stupid letter he wrote. I understood that he was sorry… and I understood he felt guilty. It was me who was unable to understand him and his logic behind the secrecy… the lies… _everything._

"Why am I thinking about this? Dammit Phoebs!" I threw the phone halfway across the room.

_Why are you talking to yourself again?_

"ARRRRRRRRRRGH!" I angrily flopped onto my back and kicked the air. "DAMN IT." I didn't want to think about Arnold, I didn't want to think about my future without him. I just… didn't want to think at all. "Who gives a crap if he's leaving? He lied to me, he doesn't _deserve_ to see me one last time!" I knew I was trying to rationalize my anger and failing miserably… but I didn't know what else to do. I grabbed my last few papers and began filling them out in a final attempt to distract myself from thinking about Arnold. Once he was on that plane and gone, my problems would be over.

_Yeah right.._

"Brain, if you don't STOP IT, or I'm going to stick a pen in you, Capiche?" I menacingly held the pen up. At that moment, I honestly felt like a complete and utter psychopath. Verbally scolding my _brain_? I needed to focus, _BADLY_. I only had a few papers left to fill out, and when I was done a good portion of the mental weight weighing on my brain would finally be lifted. "Focus Helga… FOCUS" I soon became enveloped with the last of my residency forms, desperately trying to finish them before thoughts of a certain someone made it impossible. On my last page I glanced over at the clock and my jaw nearly fell to the floor.

His plane was leaving in 30 minutes.. "So?" I reassured myself. "It doesn't matter."

_It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. IT DOESN'T MATTER._

"Oh damn it all to hell, yes it does!" my head fell into my palms. "Of course saying goodbye to him matters! What the hell is wrong with you Pataki?" I took one last glance at the clock. "I can still make it." in a matter of seconds I was digging through my clothes and changing into something other than PJ's. "Don't give up on me football head." I pulled out my cell phone and dialed his number… his phone was off. "UGH!" I stormed downstairs and past the trophy room, grabbing Big Bobs keys off the hook by the door. "I'm going out!" I announced.

"Uh huh, that's… that's nice dear." Miriam slurred from the kitchen as her blender turned on.

"Later- OOF!" as I ran out the door I collided with another person.

"Ouch." he muttered.

"What the hell?" I growled, rubbing the side of my head.

"Fantastic seeing you too." I blinked my eyes a few times and focused on the person standing next to me.

"Gerald? What are you doing here? Ugh… Whatever, I don't give a damn." I pushed past him and went down the stairs. "I have a football headed weirdo to catch." a hand suddenly wrapped around my wrist, halting me. "Let me go! There's no time for this!"

"Helga." he sternly turned me back towards him. "…. You're too late. He's already on the plane." it was probably the softest tone he's ever taken with me, and by far the most sincere.

"Then why are you here?" I did my best to hide the small tear that had formed at the corner of my eye.

_I was too late… all because of my stubbornness._

"I wanted to talk.." he pointed to the front door. "Can we go inside?"

My mind was still in the process of accepting that I completely missed out on saying goodbye to the love of my life, the last thing I was able to do was formulate a sentence. So instead I nodded mechanically and opened the front door, leading Gerald upstairs to my room.

"_She got another one already?_" I heard Big Bob whisper to Miriam.

_Ewwwwww… Gerald?_

"Take a seat.." I pointed to the computer chair as I sat down on the edge of my bed. Gerald leaned back in the chair and watched me in silence. I wasn't sure what exactly he wanted to talk about, but I mimicked his silence and waited.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" he suddenly burst with frustration. "Seriously?"

"….huh?" my brow furrowed in confusion.

"I've known you for a good portion of my life, we've spent most of our time bickering and insulting each other.. Its just how we roll." he moved the chair a little closer to me. "When it comes to you and Arnold, I've been watching from the sidelines since childhood. I always thought there was something weird about your attitude towards him, and when you finally admitted you were in love with him all those years ago, I was one of the first people to tell Arnold: 'I TOLD YOU SO!'. You may have thought you had us all fooled, but you were wrong." his eyes narrowed. "When it came to relationships, I was always there for Arnold to offer advice when he wanted it. But when it came to you? Oh no.. he wanted little to no advice. You were his own special little project. And I'd bet anything he's been into you for as long as you've been into him, he just didn't know it, he wouldn't accept it.."

"Why are you telling me this?" my fist tightened in my lap. "Can't you just… leave me alone? I'm a little frazzled already if you can't tell!"

"Just hear me out?" he scooted a little closer. When I remained silent he took that as confirmation. "I never understood you two. Not even a little bit! One moment you hate each other and then the next you're making out. I would always ask Arnold to explain this psycho relationship you two share.. And not even he could verbalize it. My mind just can't wrap around why you two are stuck in this never ending psychotic romantic tango you've created."

"Will you be arriving to a point anytime soon?" I hissed.

"Why didn't you come tonight?" his expression darkened.

"It took that long of an explanation just to ask me _THAT_?" I scoffed. "And as for why…. It's none of your business."

"I'm just trying to understand this… because Arnold apparently doesn't understand either!" he finally stood up from the chair and began pacing. "I spent the past few hours with my best friend in the world… saying goodbye. He was absolutely torn apart inside, and do you want to know why?" he grabbed my shoulders and pulled me up with him. "He was waiting for _you_ Helga! His unbreakable 'Brightside' attitude honestly believed that you would show up at that airport tonight to say goodbye! He would check his phone every two seconds and refused to keep his eyes off the entrance of the airport! He thought you would_ at LEAST_ have the decency to SHOW UP!" his voice was getting louder and louder. "How could you do that to him Helga? NEVER in my life have I seen Arnold so upset! As long as I live, I'll never forget his face when he was getting on that plane… you broke him. How _dare_ you!"

"Get your hands off of me!" I sniffled pathetically in his grasp. When he saw tears in my eyes he loosened his grip, allowing me to fall on to my bed again. "I couldn't do it" I repeated over and over.

"Why?" he sat down next to me on the bed, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Because.." I finished lamely.

"We may not be the best of friends all the time Helga.. But I do care, and I'm listening. And look, I'm sorry about yelling and-"

"It's not what you said.." I glanced over at him. Seeing him actually being nice for once was kind of creepy to me. "I just… realized how stupidly selfish I've been."

"Why didn't you come see him?"

"Because…" I felt more tears forming in my eyes. "_I would have asked him to stay_." I let out a pathetic sob before getting it under control again. "And I could _never_ ask that of him! I knew that if I went to see him to say goodbye, I would have cracked. I would have begged him to come to Providence with me… and he would have listened."

"He would have" he chuckled. "Arnold was willing to do anything for you Helga."

"Except tell me the truth.." my tone turned bitter. "He waited until it was… too late.." Gerald wrapped his arm around my shoulders and gave me a squeeze. At that point I knew my sanity was already out the window and I willing laid my head on his shoulder, accepting his comfort. We sat there in silence for a few minutes, allowing me to calm down before I lifted my head back up. "Was it this hard on you and Phoebe after you had sex? Or are me and Arnold just irrevocably screwed up?"

"Me and Phoebe?" his chest erupted in laughter. "Honestly?… I really wouldn't know."

"It's just, with Arnold I-" my breath hitched when I realized what he just said. "Wait a second…."

"Hold your tongue woman." he warned. "That's precious information! Let's just… stick to the subject at hand."

I knew I was probably grinning like an idiot, but I didn't care. That information was golden joke material. Instead of throwing it in his face, I decided to be mature about it and say nothing. "Gerald… you're Arnolds best friend, and I want your opinion. Do you think I was too hard on him about San Lorenzo?"

He let out a long sigh and shook his head. "Nope… the boy was an idiot about it. He should have told you about it from the very beginning. He didn't tell any of us until it was official.. You weren't the only one who got hurt Pataki." he released my shoulder and turned to face me. "But you shouldn't have been so harsh… he apologized to you in every way he knew how… and you wouldn't accept his apologies. That really hurt him."

"My heart was broken!… it still is." my head hung low. "I'd give anything to go back…"

"This all happened for a reason." he smiled softly. "Arnold has been waiting for this opportunity for as long as he can remember. This journey is his leap of faith, and he'll never be able to move on until he does this… and _that's_ why I was able to forgive him for keeping it a secret. I can't blame Arnold for following his heart… and neither should you."

For the first time since I've known Gerald… I felt like he was truly and genuinely a good person. He understood Arnold on a deep level… probably even deeper than I knew him. "Thank you Gerald.." I suddenly wrapped my arms around his shoulders and hugged him.

"For what?"

"Lately my mind has been in a fog.. And you cleared a lot of things up for me. As much as I hate to admit it… you're a wise man Johanssen" I smirked. "and I think I finally see in you what Phoebe does.."

Both of us smiled softly at one another. "And as much as _I_ hate admitting it… you're pretty cool Helga. You're the only one who can keep up with my witty remarks!" he stood up and dug in his pocket, producing a piece of paper. "This has Arnolds address in San Lorenzo, and a number. At least write him… okay? He'd really like that."

"Thanks." I stood up with him and gave him one last friendly hug.

"I better get going." he headed over towards the door. "I've got a date with Phoebe in half an hour."

"Wait! Before you go…" I went over to my bedside drawer and dug around for a moment. "You might need this." I held my hand out and pressed something in his.

He glanced into his palm and his eyes instantly narrowed. "Ha ha, very funny" he held up a small silver packet marked '_Trojan_'.

"See you later 'no-bone Johanssen'." I let out a wicked giggle before pushing him through the door. And just like that… I was alone again. I didn't realize how much I missed human contact until Gerald had his arm wrapped around me and we were able to joke around like the old days.

_Days when __he__ was still here.._

Everything Gerald said tonight had rang so true in my mind.. The reason why Arnold left, and the reason he had to do this. His life was incomplete without knowing where his parents were. Instead of sitting around all his life and wondering what might have been, he actually _did_ something about it. I should have been more understanding to him.. I should have said goodbye.

"Helga, you're an idiot." I concluded. And for the first time in weeks, I didn't care that I was talking to myself. Because in a few months… that was all I was going to have. With that thought I remembered the final bit of paperwork sitting unfinished at my desk. I grabbed my chair and plopped down with a pen, filling in the last few lines. "There…" I let out a sigh of relief. "I'm _finished!_" by Monday morning my college paperwork would be off to Brown University.. And my life would finally be starting. I leaned back lazily in my chair and propped my feet up on the desk, the piece of paper that Gerald had left with me fell from my pocket and landed on to the floor. On it was written an odd address and a foreign number.

_Do it._

I grabbed a piece of stationary from the drawer and set it on the desk.

'_Dear Arnold…'_

* * *

**Okay, first of all I would like to say I'm SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SOOOOOOO sorry about the delay of this chapter. I blame my crappy-ass internet. Lol. It's been on and off every single day. I NEVER wanted to take over a month before updating, that's just unforgivable! So I hope this chapter can somewhat make up for my absence.**

**About this chapter:**** YES, Gerald and Phoebe are virgins. (hehe hehe) never did I ever **_**say**_** they did it before. I just like thinking Gerald THINKS he knows everything when it comes to the ways of love.**

**Also, the next chapter is the last actual 'chapter', but there WILL be an epilogue. (I know, I'm sad its ending too)**

**So lets all cross our fingers and pray that my internet doesn't go retarded again!**

**Until then, **

**~ThriLLer89**


	20. L'amour brille sous les étoiles

**Wow, I seriously cannot believe the end is finally here! It's been a crazy adventure, and it has been SO awesome recreating the Hey Arnold! world and sharing it with all of you. A big part of me is sad that this story is coming to an end, but on the other hand I can't wait to start another story! (something new is already in the works!)**

**So, thank you all for your input and support throughout this whole process. It means the world to me! Without you guys, there wouldn't have been a story =)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold!**

* * *

_**(**Three Weeks Earlier**) **_

**Arnolds POV:**

For as long as I can remember, everything in my life has _always_ come back to Helga Geraldine Pataki. Unfortunately it took me most of our lives to realize what her significance meant… and what she really means to me. When we were kids, I never really understood her. There was something about the way she glared and snarled at everyone that always had me intrigued… I _knew_ there was more than meets the eye. I remember the very first moment we met like it was just yesterday… those very few days when she wasn't the class bully. Before I ever stepped foot into the 'Urban Tots' preschool, I saw her. She was walking all alone in the pouring rain, covered with mud from head to toe. I immediately felt like I had to reach out and help this sweet blonde haired girl. I opened my umbrella over her head, her eyes shifted in surprise to meet my gaze. For as long as I live… I don't think I could forget the look in her eyes. She seemed so confused by my kind gesture, for the life of me I don't think I could ever understand why she had never received any form of kindness. I complimented her pink bow, adding to her already confused state. Of course at that age I didn't find the need for any further small talk and I continued on with my day like normal. I didn't talk to her again for a few days after our first encounter. During our morning snack time one day, Gerald and I were practicing our new handshake and joking around as usual. From the corner of my eye I saw Harold steal Helgas graham crackers an he stuffed them greedily into his mouth. Out of instinct I grabbed my plate of graham crackers and kindly offered them to Helga before the situation could escalate any further. We exchanged a smile and a wave as I went back over to Gerald, by the time I sat down Harold had gotten the whole group riled up and laughing at Helga. From across the room our gazes met, both of us confused. In the blink of an eye, Helgas face adorned a scowl as she pushed Harold onto his back, threatening to beat him with 'Old Betsy and the Five Avengers'. The entire group of kids were in complete shock from her sudden outburst of rage. She angrily stomped and kicked her way into the other room, warning the other kids that _she_ was the boss.

Helga wasn't outwardly mean to me…. Not at first. For several weeks she terrorized our pintsized classmates into submission, threatening to beat them or shove them into the trashcan. As for myself… I wasn't fearful of Helga. I saw a girl who wanted the respect and attention of her classmates. Even at three years old I knew I wanted to be her friend, I felt like she wouldn't feel the need to assert herself so harshly and let people like Harold make her upset by simply laughing if she had someone supporting her on her side. There was _something_ about her that drew me to her, it was inexplicable. So on a Friday afternoon during recess I approached her at the seesaw, she was sitting all by herself and unable to move her seat up and down. I asked her if I could play with her, she got a loopy grin on her face and nodded vigorously. As we began playing and laughing together, Harold called out from a distance "_Oooh! Look at the widdle lovebirds!"_. Helga stopped moving completely, staring at me for a good ten seconds. The familiar scowl she had frequently used on the others suddenly etched itself on her face. As I was voicing my concern she stood up suddenly, causing me to hit the ground harshly as I rolled off the end of the seesaw, scraping both of my elbows and hitting my head. As I lay on the ground with tears threatening to spill from my eyes, she grabbed me by the collar of my shirt and held me close to her face "_You better stay out of my way from now on you little football head!"_ the other kids began laughing at my newfound nickname as she dropped me back to the ground and quickly ran back inside.

From that moment on she made it her personal mission to torture me on a daily basis, constantly reaffirming her 'hatred' for me. It was a ritual that stuck with us until we were teenagers. And now that I'm older and somewhat more familiar with the inner workings of her mind… I understand why she acted the way she did for all those years. Our personalities and upbringings were completely different, yet somehow we were exactly the same. There was mutual ground hidden underneath the surface. I didn't see it at first, but Helga saw it all along. The hidden pain and loneliness we both suffered from was the thing that kept us in the same orbit. She was basically all alone in the world, but her pride left her unable to lean on me like she had always desired… so she clung to me in other ways, becoming my own personal bully. As for me, I was more that happy to keep my problems hidden from the world. I was seen as the guy with the happy outlook on life, I didn't want to be pitied because of circumstances beyond my control… _Just like her._. And when it came to Helgas nonstop bullying, no matter what she would do to me I would try and remember that person I had met all those years ago... That sweet little muddy girl I met in the rain…

The real Helga..

"Arnold!…. Hey Arnold!" a hand roughly grabbed my shoulder and shook me.

"What!" I hissed, my facial expression softening once I saw that it was Gerald. "Sorry Gerald. I have a lot on my mind.."

"You've been looking at your reflection for fifteen minutes! Principal Reed is yelling at all of us to line up already. We gotta go!" He grabbed my wrist and began dragging me from the locker room and ushering me towards the football field.

In no way was I enthusiastic about our graduation ceremony taking place today. I was feeling uncharacteristically bitter about it, actually. It was a means to an end.. Everything after today was going to be different. A part of me wanted to see what the future was going to bring… and the other couldn't stop thinking about Helga. After today I wouldn't see her on a daily basis, after today we'd be permanently going our separate ways.

"Konnichiwa Arnold!" Phoebe popped up in front of me suddenly, smiling brightly. "Are you excited?" If Phoebe had looked forward to one moment in her life thus far, this had to be it. Graduating meant the world to her.

"Yeah… sure." my body language was displaying a completely different answer at the moment, and Phoebe was picking up on it.

She grabbed my right hand, comfortingly patting it with her other. "I'm sorry she won't come around to share this moment… I know it meant a lot to you two."

"I'm fine Phoebe, really. But thank you." I glanced over at Gerald and smiled weakly. "I'm _fine._" I didn't know who I was trying harder to convince… them? Or me?

In the distance I could vaguely see Helga and Rhonda casually conversing with one another. I desperately wanted to be the one who was standing next to her, preparing for our next walk of life. But after our falling out at Rhondas house party, I doubt Helga would ever give me another chance. _'You made your choice all those months ago… and now I've made mine.' _her words still sent a chill down my spine, and a pang of guilt to my heart.

"My man, you're demonstrating the attention span of a cockroach right now. Are you _sure _you're okay to do this?" Despite my gentle nature, I sent him a seething glare that expressed my severe irritation with that question being repeated for the umpteenth time that night. "Well excuse me!" he rolled his eyes. "I forgot your whole 'leave me alone' routine whenever you're in the presence of pissy-pants Pataki."

"Gerald.." I warned.

"Okay! Geez, I'm just kidding Arnold." he slung his arm around my shoulders. "You gotta get yourself out of this slump! Tonight is supposed to be _fun_!"

"Woo." I slowly twirled my finger in the air. "Yay."

"You are such a….. sourpuss!" he scoffed, releasing me and walking over towards Phoebe and Lila. "_Why do I even bother_?" he grumbled under his breath.

During the ceremony I sat between Stinky and Lila, clapping on cue and smiling for the others. On the inside I was wishing this whole thing was over already. I wanted to get my diploma and run back to my room, locking myself away until I had to leave so I didn't have to deal with these emotions anymore.

"Yeah Helga! Woo hoo!" Lila furiously clapped when Helgas name was announced as she walked across the stage to get her diploma.

When she glanced in my general direction from the stage, my heart instantly started fluttering. I was dying to cheer her name and stand up on my chair, instead I clapped my hands quietly and redirected my eyes from where she was watching me. I felt like a big fat chicken.

After the ceremony a stream of fireworks began shooting into the air and exploding into different colors all through the sky. While my classmates shot silly string into the air and tossed their caps in celebration… I couldn't stop glancing over at Helga. She was fixated on the fireworks going off above us. It was only then that I realized what she must have been thinking about…. Our first date.

"_I'm sorry.._" I whispered softly to her silhouette in the distance.

"There you are! Come on man! Your grandparents are already looking for you." Gerald grabbed my shoulder and turned me towards him. "You coming?" he shouted over the buzz of the crowd.

I glanced over my shoulder one last time at her before nodding solemnly. "Yeah.."

We maneuvered quickly through the sea of families and flashing cameras until we found my grandparents near the bleachers. "Way to go Shortman! We're mighty proud of ya!" Grandpa grabbed my arm and pulled me into a bone crushing hug.

"_Thank…..you_" I hissed between clenched teeth.

"Two, four, six, eight! Who do we appreciate? KIMBA!" Grandma held a set of pompoms up in the air and cheered loudly.

"Pookie! For the last time this is a _graduation_, not a football game!" Grandpa finally let me go to shush his neurotic wife.

"I'm gonna be on the lookout for Phoebe. Her family wants to take _pictures_" Gerald cringed. "And I gotta find the guys too… Come find us when you're done with the crazies." he smirked, sticking his hand out for our handshake.

"Just give me a few minutes." I stuck my fist out to meet his.

"Okay Kimba." Grandma pulled out a camera from inside her pompom. "SMILE!" several flashes went of without warning.

"Grandma!" I groaned. "I'm really not in the mood."

Grandpa took the camera away from her trigger happy fingers and sighed. "Pookie, go run some stadiums or _something_! For Pete's sake you crazy old coot!" and with that grandma took off, cackling wildly.

_How am I related to these people?_

"Okay.. Now.." Grandpa held the camera up. "Smile Shortman!" before I could object to any more pictures his attention was drawn back to grandma, who was currently trying to take pictures with Iggy and his family. "And Pookie get away from those people! You don't even know them!"

When he finally managed to wrangle grandma away from the confused family, I allowed them to finally take a few pictures. The more I cooperated, the quicker I could get out of there. When they were satisfied I excused myself so I could find Gerald and Phoebe, we still had Geralds big graduation party to attend later on tonight. As I weaved my way back into the crowd I almost instantly saw Gerald on the opposite side of the field. I picked up my pace and followed not too far behind.

He suddenly disappeared behind a large crowd of people just as I was about to catch up. "Of course Gerald _had_ to be on the opposite side of the field in this madhouse!" I grumbled to myself as I forcefully pushed my way through the large crowd until I could hear the sound of Geralds voice. "Gerald, did you find Phoe-" as I pushed the last person out of my way, Helga suddenly came into view. "….be?"

_Smooth.._

All movement suddenly ceased within our little group. Gerald was the only person adorning a smirk on his face, obviously enjoying this misfortunate situation.

"Well.." Helga cleared her throat with vigor. "I'd love to stick around for this awkward silence, but I have some _business_ to attend to. And so, I bid you adieu." She took a few steps back. "Later Phoebs, tall hair boy….." when our gazes finally met she showed no emotion, turning away and leaving without another word.

"Ouch." Gerald concluded when Helga was finally out of earshot.

"Ugh, Gerald!" Phoebe lightly slapped his arm. "… I'm so sorry Arnold."

"For what?" I let out a weak chuckle. "If Helga wants to act like that, she can. I have no right to say anything anymore.." They exchanged looks with each other before looking back at me sympathetically. The more people pitied me, the more it irritated me. I didn't deserve _anyone's _pity… I ended up getting what I deserved.

"Look.. Why don't we get out of here? We can head over to my house and get the party started." he slung both of his arms around our shoulders. "Sound like a plan?"

"I don't know you guys.. I'm not really in a partying mood right now. Why don't you two just go on without me? You don't want me ruining your night." I shrugged his arm off of me and stood in front of them. "and before you ask, yes I'm fine, and yes I'm sure."

They both looked apprehensive at the idea of leaving without me. "Can we at least drop you off at home?" Phoebe held on to Geralds waist a little tighter. "It'd make me feel better."

"She's right man. Let us drop you off."

"If it'll make you feel better" I sighed, defeated.

We 'de-robed' in the locker rooms and met up back at Geralds car a few minutes later. Nobody said a word for the duration of the car ride to my house, in a way I was sort of thankful for the silence. But part of me missed the mindless chatter that kept my mind from wandering. I couldn't stop thinking about the enormity of what was about to happen in my life. I was officially graduated from high school… and in two weeks I was going to San Lorenzo. I was leaving behind all the people I know and love… and I was leaving _Helga_.

"We're here." Gerald sighed, unlocking the car doors. "Call me later on tonight? It'll probably be around one-ish before I'm free."

I wanted to object to his 'babysitting poor lonely Arnold' plan, but I knew he was just trying to look out for his best friend. "Sure thing Gerald." I nodded. "Thank you for the ride" I squeezed out of the backseat and leaned down until I was eye level with them. "Good night Phoebe."

"Good night Arnold." she smiled softly. "See you soon?"

"Yeah.." I returned her smile as best I could. "Make sure and have fun tonight!" And with that I waved goodbye and finally went inside. All I wanted was to curl up in my bed and forget all of this drama ever happened. Helga would still be my amazing girlfriend.. And I wouldn't have ever bought that plane ticket that ruined everything

_…How could I even THINK that?_

The plane ticket wasn't the criminal in this case… I was. All the respect I earned from Helga and my friends seemed to be flushed down the toilet now. I was the jerk who failed to tell his girlfriend he was leaving to another country… and had no clue when he'd be coming back. I broke her heart while simultaneously making me look like the biggest jerk that ever lived… There has to be some kind of idiot award for that..

I swung my bedroom door open, hitting the stack of boxes that had been packed up. With me leaving for who knows how long, I told my grandparents that they needed to make my room available for rent. They didn't like the idea at first, but after a week of contemplating I finally got them to agree. They already had someone moving in two days after I leave. I had to admit I was going to miss this room… it held a lot of memories for me. Grandpa would always tell me stories about my dad sleeping in this very same room when he was a kid. He was the one who had fixed it up with all the technological gadgets. Though I don't remember my father, sleeping in his old bedroom always made me feel closer to him somehow.

I stood in the center of the room and surveyed my surroundings. All the posters and memorabilia were taken off the walls and it looked so barren. The only items left in the room were my bed, and a photo of my parents… and a picture of me and Helga. Call me a glutton for punishment, but I couldn't force myself to put her photo away.

"Wow…. This is….. _Boring_." I spoke into the silence that surrounded me. "I should have just gone to that stupid party." I huffed, grabbing my computer chair and plopping down at the desk. All of my old school supplies were neatly stacked up and ready to be packed for storage… though I didn't know what I would ever need them for again. Until I came home from San Lorenzo, I didn't make any college plans.

I grabbed one of the sheets of binder paper from the stack of supplies and a pen, drawing little doodles all around the edges of the paper. In the left corner I drew a little heart with A and H in the middle and a small arrow going through it. I instantly felt like I was back in elementary school, crushing on an unattainable girl. Frustrated with myself, I crumbled the paper and tossed it in the trashcan. I grabbed another sheet of paper, staring at it for several minutes. My hand finally lifted and began writing '_Helga.._' at the top. I reread her name several dozen times, unsure why I was really writing anything at all. After staring at her name a bit longer, I started writing more and more… By the time I was done writing, I realized I was finally able to say the things I never got to say out loud to her.. And the things she needed to hear. I checked the desk drawers until I finally found an envelope, labeling it '_Helga_' on the front before stuffing my letter inside, licking it shut. According to the clock by my bed, it was nearing 12:15 in the morning.. My grandparents had long since gone to sleep and boarding house was silent. I grabbed my car keys and wallet and silently slipped out the front door.

By the time I pulled up to Helgas house I was already losing my nerve. I couldn't guarantee that she wasn't going to kick my face in for disturbing her in the middle of the night, and I didn't know how she was going to react to the letter itself. The only light on in the house was her bedroom light, so I knew she was awake. Instead of knocking on the door and risk getting her in trouble, I decided to climb the fire escape and give it to her that way. It had been several weeks since I had entered her room like this, going up the small staircase brought back all the old memories… ones that I really missed. I pulled myself up to the small platform outside her window and sat down with the letter in my hands. I was deathly afraid of knocking on her window and having to face her. After several minutes of contemplation I decided I was going to leave the letter on the window for her to find. I quietly went back down the fire escape and retrieved the roll of tape that I kept in the dashboard, and took it with me back up the stairs. Once the letter was securely taped to the window, I went back down for the final time, careful not to make any noise. I grabbed some of the gravel in the planter next to Helgas house and began lightly tossing the pieces against her window to get her attention. After throwing a handful of them I heard a rustling coming from her room and I quickly got back in my car, taking off before she could see me.

I didn't know if my letter was going to mean anything to Helga.. All I could do was hope that she would understand where I was coming from, and maybe… _just_ maybe… she would come to say goodbye.

* * *

_**(**Two Weeks Later**)**_

My dislike for birthday parties has possibly been replaced with a new hatred: fancy steak dinners held in my honor. My grandparents and Gerald made arrangements to hold a "goodbye party" for me on my last night in town. They picked out the nicest steakhouse in all of Hillwood and invited as many people as possible….. Helga was the only one who didn't RSVP. I found myself surrounded by the people I grew up with, all of them wishing me good luck and safe travels. People took my dreary disposition as 'goodbye jitters' and promised to keep in contact with me despite the distance. Frankly, my former classmates were the last thing on my mind. I was about to leave everything I knew behind and embark on what some considered a hopeless journey. I had to keep reminding myself _why_ I was doing this… This wasn't just for me… it was for my family.

"You really aren't digging this." Gerald pulled up a chair and sat next to me. "You haven't even touched your food….. Talk to me man.."

I glanced at the untouched steak sitting on my plate, trying to think of a response. "It's a big day… I've dreamt of this for a long time. I'm just a little nervous I guess."

"I don't blame you." he smirked. "But I have to give credit where credit is due… you're a lot more composed than I would be in your situation."

"Depressed is 'composed'? Who knew." I laughed despite myself.

"Still no word from her I assume?" for the first time since…. _ever_, Gerald didn't call her a vicious nickname. I couldn't help but stare at him blankly for a few moments. I never told anyone about graduation night. "Helga told Phoebe about the letter.." he clarified. "and she didn't even _call_?"

I took my fork and stabbed the steak harshly, leaving the fork standing vertically. "What do you think?"

"I'm sorry.."

"Don't be." I snapped my head in his direction. "I haven't given up hope.."

"But… Arnold, you're leaving in a few hours… and I don't-"

"She can still show up at the airport!" my voice raised to a shout, causing everyone to stare at us. I leaned closer to him and lowered my voice "_You may have given up on her, but I haven't_."

"Hey, if you think she'll be there then I believe you!" he raised his hands defensively. "I didn't mean to get you all riled up."

I groaned in frustration at my own maliciousness, covering my eyes. "No, _I'm_ sorry Gerald… I'm just really on edge right now."

"It's okay.." his hand gently patted my shoulder.

"I hate feeling like I'm about to explode all time! I'm not like this at all… I don't let things like this made me so mental."

"You're human!" he smirked. "We all feel this way sometimes.. None of us hold it against you. We understand how hard this is for you.." Phoebe emerged from the back room where the others had congregated and came behind Gerald, pulling up a chair next to him.

"Hey Phoebe." I nodded in her direction.

"Hello Arnold… are you enjoying yourself?" Gerald turned harshly towards her and shook his head furiously.

"Gerald." I kicked his shin under the table. "I'm _fine_… and everything is very nice. Thanks."

"Damn dude!" Gerald rubbed his leg from underneath the table. "Are you wearing steel toed boots? Geez."

"No." I smirked. "You're just a wuss." Phoebe chuckled and nodded in agreement. "Hey Phoebe… um…. I know I've been asking a lot, but did you hear from Helga lately?"

She instantly looked away and sighed. "I talked to her before we came here.. We spoke on the phone."

"Is she okay?"

"She's fine.." she exchanged another look with her boyfriend. "She's been finishing her college paperwork."

I nodded my head in understanding. So she had been busy the past few weeks? It would explain a lot. Before I could ask anymore probing questions grandpa announced that it was time for us to head home so I could finish packing my stuff and say goodbye to the borders before we went to the airport. On our way out of the restaurant I hugged Phoebe goodbye for a good five minutes. She wasn't coming to the airport with Gerald, she insisted that me and him had our own final goodbye in private. All the others that came to the goodbye party hugged me and wished me well one final time before we left. It still didn't feel real that in a little over two hours I was going to be on a plane…. Leaving Hillwood indefinitely.

Gerald planned on driving Phoebe home and meeting up at the airport in half an hour. When we got back to the boarding house I hugged all the boarders, most of them got teary eyed and repeatedly said they would look forward to writing letters… I couldn't believe so many people were going to be missing me. I guess you never realize how many people care about you until you're forced to say goodbye.

"It's time to go Shortman.." Grandpa came from upstairs, looking down at the floor the whole time. "Are you gonna go get your stuff up in your room?"

"Yeah… I'll be down in a minute." I walked past him, lightly touching his shoulder and giving him a reassuring smile. My absence in their lives was going to be hard, and I knew grandpa was trying his best to be strong for me.

The inside of my room was now completely empty except for two large suitcases and a duffle bag that were stacked in the middle of the room. I grabbed the duffle bag and slung it over my shoulder and grabbed the two other bags by their handles. Earlier that day I had packed away the picture of my parents in my luggage. I considered putting the photo of me and Helga away in storage, but instead I left it face down on my old desk.. Putting her memory away in a storage shed didn't seem fitting. At least at the boarding house I knew her picture would be safe. I set the two big bags back down on the ground and picked up the framed photo one last time. It was a photo of us from last Christmas, kissing underneath the mistletoe. My arms were wrapped around her waist, lifting her off her feet slightly.. We both looked so happy. I glanced over my shoulder to make sure I was alone before opening my luggage and forcing the picture into it.

_I'm officially a pushover._

"Okay grandpa.." the luggage thumped on each stair loudly as I came downstairs. "I'm ready." The boarders had congregated at the bottom of the stairs as I came down, every one of them looked like they wanted to burst into tears. It barely registered in my mind that I had no clue when I would see them again. I set my bags at the foot of the stairs and looked at the kooky people I've come to know as my dysfunctional family. "I'm really going to miss you guys. Thank you for everything.."

Mr. Hyunh threw his hands up in the air, tears falling freely from his eyes "GROUP HUG!"

"Oh no! That's not- OOF!" several sets of arms wrapped around me, every single one of them began crying like babies. I pleadingly stared at my grandpa, begging for an escape from their clutches.

"Okay, okay! You're suffocating the boy." he began tearing them away one by one. "We gotta get him to the airport so you can start missing him!" he shucked Mr. Hyunh from my midsection and finally freed me. "Let's go Shortman.."

I gathered up my bags and followed my grandparents to their old Packard. After everything was put in the trunk I sat in the backseat and we took off. As we went down our street, I glanced over my shoulder at the boarding house that was slowly fading in the distance. I wanted to cry… I wanted to wave a white flag and call it quits so I could stay in my little room and everything would stay the same.

_I'm doing this for mom and dad… and grandma and grandpa._

And _that_ was the only assurance I needed to keep going.

The Hillwood airport wasn't particularly crowded when we got there. Soon after we parked we found Gerald waiting at my gate terminal. I could tell the reality of my departure had finally hit him too. I greeted him with our handshake and he smiled weakly.

"Hey man.." he playfully slugged my shoulder. "Feeling any better?"

I scanned the airport terminal in search of a familiar blonde headed girl. "Kinda.." I sighed. "Did Phoebe hear from Helga again?"

He shook his head lightly "I'm sorry.."

My phone vibrated in my pocket and I instantly got excited. When I checked it I was disappointed to find it was just a text message from Arnie. "She'll be here." I assured. "I know it!"

"Yeah.." he sat down in one of the chairs pointed to the one next to his. "We'll all wait here with you buddy."

I took a seat next to him, keeping my phone in-hand just in case she called. I would glance at the airport entrance every few minutes in anticipation of seeing her. "She'll be here." I kept repeating every so often while checking my phone. Suddenly the minutes turned into nearly an hour… time was running out.

"Shortman.." Grandpa followed my gaze towards the door. "You need to get through security soon… I don't think she's-"

"Phil.." Grandma grabbed his arm. "Let him wait a little while longer.." it was so uncharacteristic for my grandma to be the _sane_ one of the group.

"Can you give me a minute to say goodbye to my grandparents?" I looked over at Gerald. "I really do need to get through security soon."

"Sure." He got up and took a few steps back "I'm going to… Uhh..…. check out the lobby." he sped off in the direction of the ticket lines.

I glanced at my phone one last time before shutting it off and stuffing it in my luggage bag. Both grandma and grandpa watched me with tears glistening eyes. Saying goodbye to the people who raised me was probably one of the hardest things I'd ever have to do. I didn't want to leave them here in Hillwood… but I knew this was the journey I was always meant to take, and I was doing it for them too.

"We're really going to miss you Shortman." Grandpa reached out and ruffled my hair.

"My little Kimba is all grown up." a lone tear fell down her cheek.

Seeing how much my future absence in their lives was already affecting them was making _me_ want to cry. I fought the urge as hard as I could. "I love you." I looked both of them in the eyes. "I can never thank you enough for everything you've done for me. And I want you to know that I'm doing this not only for me… but I'm doing it for you-" both of them pulled me in and hugged me tightly, crying softly into my shoulders. My strength suddenly dissipated as a few tears fell down my cheeks. We separated after a few moments, all three of us wiping the tears from our faces.

"No matter what happens out there Shortman… we'll always be proud of you."

"Thank you grandpa." I wiped the final remains of tears from my eyes.

"Don't forget to write us!" grandma took my face in her hands and kissed my forehead.

"I wont." I cringed at the embarrassing public display of affection.

We hugged one more time before calling Gerald back over. Saying goodbye to Gerald was going to be another obstacle. He and I have been best friends for nearly fifteen years now, we had never spent longer than a summer apart before. "Hey.." chuckled lamely when we were finally alone.

"Hey.." we made eye contact and both of us smirked. "I guess this is it?"

"For now." I clarified. "You know I'll be back Gerald.. We'll get our spring break in Cabo someday!" we both laughed a moment longer before the mood became serious again. "Thank you Gerald… you've been there for me as long as I can remember. You're helped me through a lot of tough times, and you've always been there to give me advice. You were my lifestyle guru!"

"Thanks buddy.." his fist connected with my shoulder. "I'm really going to miss you.."

"Oh yeah! Before I forget.." I reached into my pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. "That has a number and an address… you can call or write me anytime."

"Good.. awesome. That's… Great!" he looked down at the paper. It was only then that I realized he had a tear falling down his cheek, and he was desperately trying to hide it.

"Gerald?… are you….._ crying?_" I grabbed both of his shoulders.

"N-.. No man! I have something in my eye!" he rubbed the back of his hand over the offending tear.

"Don't pull the tough guy routine on _me_." I smirked. "Come here you weirdo." despite his resistance at first I managed to pull him into a very 'unmanly' (as he would call it) hug. After a moment his arms flew around me and hugged me tightly. We separated after a few moments, he practically jumped half a foot away in case anyone else was watching.

"So.. Um.. Still no word from Helga?" he shook his head vigorously to regain his cool.

"Nope…" I looked over towards the airport entrance. "I'm still giving her a few more minutes." All four of us stood around the terminal, each of us looking for her.

Each second that was passing was more and more agonizing than the last. My flight was leaving in 50 minutes and there was so sign of Helga anywhere…. _She wasn't coming._

As the reality began setting in, my heart felt like it had finally shattered. "She's not coming." my voice came out almost robotically.

"I'm so sorry Arnold…" Gerald sighed.

"I'm sure something must have come up Shortman.." grandpa put a comforting hand on my shoulder.

I had made Helga so angry and bitter with me that she was refusing to come say goodbye to me. Out of everything we had been through in our lives, I never thought that something like this would be the thing that would completely break us apart forever. I had no clue when I would be seeing her again, and I didn't know if she would ever give me the chance to speak to her..

"Arnold? Are you okay?" Gerald grabbed my arm. "You're practically breaking the handle on your suitcase!"

I glanced down at my hand that was gripping tightly to the handle. "_I'm fine_." I whispered, hanging my head. "_I better get going_.."

"Arnold-" he reached out towards me again.

"_Bye Gerald.._" I pushed his hand away and walked towards the hall that lead to security. "_Bye grandma… bye grandpa._" I walked down the hallway, fighting back fresh tears that had began forming in my eyes. There were no words to express how terrible I felt at that very moment… my complete and utter idiocy has finally taken it's toll on me.

After finishing with the metal detectors and luggage check in, and another short wait in the loading terminal, my plane was finally ready for boarding. From the window I was sitting by on the plane I could see grandma and grandpa and Gerald watching from inside the building frantically waving their goodbyes. At that moment I couldn't even return their sentiment… I was still trying desperately to hold back my tears of disappointment. After a while my head hung low in front of me, resting in my palms. When I felt the plane begin going down the runway and lifting off the ground I stared out the window and looked down at the city of Hillwood, which was growing smaller and smaller…. The smaller the city became, the more I realized that my life was about to change forever.

"_Goodbye Helga.." _I whispered.

* * *

_**(**Three Weeks Later**)-**_**Early July.**

'_Dear Arnold,_

_What else is there to say anymore? We've both gone and made a mockery of this thing they call 'love'. I never thought the day would come where you would screw up so massively…. But you did. I mean you REALLY did. You broke my heart, and for the first time in my life I was truly lost. Without you in my life there was nothing left at all to hold on to. I've spent our time apart wondering 'what if?'…. what if we never had sex? What if you never kept San Lorenzo a secret from me? Would anything be different? And after some serious self reflection I came to the realization that…. I can't live in the land of 'what if?'. The harsh reality is; we did__ have sex…. You __did__ keep San Lorenzo a secret. I hated you. I honestly hated you with a burning passion. Yet I still loved you with every fiber of my being. It's a never ending rollercoaster with us, isn't it? We're high and low, fast and slow… and you never know what's going to happen when we get to the last drop._

_I could spend the rest of my life trying to blame you for our problems, it's the easy route. Boy lies to girl; boy loses girl…. But I don't blame you for everything that went wrong. (hold back your shock Arnoldo, I'm not done yet.) Let me just throw this out there since I'm being honest; I, Helga G. Pataki… am an asshole. You have apologized to me repeatedly, but I have thwarted every effort you've made at reconciliation. It's not that I didn't want to forgive you… I just couldn't. After everything we've been through together… making up just in time to be separated again just didn't sound all too appealing. But I had a change of heart earlier today… I knew when your flight was leaving, but I ended up waiting too long. You were already gone… I sincerely regret not saying goodbye in person, but now that I've had time to think about it… maybe saying goodbye this way would be easier for both of us. _

_You will always be my first love, and probably the only man I will every feel so deeply about. You changed my life, and I could never repay you for the joy you brought into my world. I'm sorry things couldn't be different… and I'm sorry I hurt you too. Always remember that I love you, despite whatever chaos ensued. Keep your head up to the sky, and whenever you're lonely remember that I'm always thinking of you too… Like you once said; I'm the stars in your sky… L'amour brille sous les étoiles (Love shines under the stars)._

_Here's to our futures, football head._

_~ Helga"_

In Hillwood, the weather patterns were sometimes considered to be odd. Some days it would be hot, and the next day people would be in jackets. San Lorenzo on the other hand? The weather was a tad more…. Temperamental? Summer heat is one thing, but experiencing the summer heat in the _jungle_ is a whole other story. The thickness of the air and the moisture that seems to constantly be lingering around you would be enough to drive anyone insane. One moment it would be blistering heat, and not even the shade of the plants could shelter the harsh rays from frying your skin. In another half an hour the clouds would come in and a heavy rain would start falling… sounds refreshing? Not when the rain feels like hot tub water is being pored over you in large increments. Days like that force the team to retreat to our huts until the bad weather passes, which in turn slow down our search-time for the day…. Today was one of those days. We had gotten about four hours into our efforts before the clouds began forming. Enrique, the man in charge of the R.M.S.L. organization ushered us quickly out of the dense jungle before the heated rain could ambush our small group.

I had my very own hut in our base camp. Despite being built out of plywood, tarp and bamboo, it felt like my own little home. After spending just three weeks here I was becoming accustom to the frequent trips back to our huts. It gave me time to think about our next move… and it gave me time to reflect on other things…. Like the letter I received from Helga just a few days ago. The fact that she wrote me at all was quite a shock, just a few weeks ago I thought I would never hear from her again. When the mail plane landed and Enrique informed me that I had gotten a letter, I automatically assumed it was from my grandparents. I was surprised…happy… and slightly nauseous at the same time to see it was from her. When I finished reading it, I really didn't know how I should feel. She didn't hate me, not as much as I thought anyway. And most importantly… she said still loved me. Knowing that she returned my sentiment made all the difference. I began a new letter to her yesterday night but couldn't find the words to say, so it remains untouched in my stack of various papers.

As for my adventures so far in San Lorenzo, we've spent a lot of time and energy looking into a man known as 'La Sombra'. I had heard the story from my grandpa before, and read about him again in my fathers travel journal many times. Most leads that we had left us unsuccessful. In the pit of my stomach… I knew La Sombra had something to do with my parents disappearance. The only other lead I had to offer was the map my father left in his journal. At present, Enrique and I are in the process of making a more detailed map and marking our trail in the jungle so the group can decipher what would be the safest way to proceed. The path marked on my fathers map looked simple enough at first, but quicksand, waterfalls and jungle animals were just a few of the obstacles we had to face. To find the safest route to the location marked on the map would take several weeks of planning and preparation.

"_Arnold_!" a loud thump echoed through the thin walls of my little hut. "_Arnold!_" the voice called out again in a heavy Spanish accent. I knew instantly it was Enrique.

I hopped up off my small cot in the corner and opened the plywood door. "Hey Enrique… what's going on?" I stuck my head halfway out the door to asses the rain situation. "When do you think we'll head out again?"

"Probably not for another few hours." the middle aged man held a piece of tarp over his head to shield himself from the grape-sized raindrops, teetering comically each time a larger raindrop in hit.. "We have a delivery truck coming in half an hour with our food supply for the week and we need as many people as possible to help out so it will take less time to unload."

"Oh! Yeah.. I'll get geared up in a few minutes." I pointed to my rain gear that sat in the corner. "Anything else?"

He reached inside his army-style jacket and produced a piece of paper. "We think you got a message today on the radio. Some loony lady was asking for 'Kimba'. They told her you weren't at camp and she left a message." he handed me the small piece of paper. "See you in a bit!" he called out as he ran to the next hut just a few feet away.

"Grandma?" I unfolded the piece of paper and scanned it.

'_I hope all is well out there on the frontier pardner. Change is on the horizon!'_

"Well that was… weird."

I always knew my grandma was a tad loony, but that made no sense at all. I appreciated her attempt at contact, but I would have to deal with getting in touch with my grandparents later. I still had to suit up to endure the relentless downpour outside. I slipped on the water proof pants and heavy boots, carefully lacing them up so the water wouldn't get to my feet, and finally put on my heavy blue raincoat. In the winter this kind of garb would be appropriate, but in San Lorenzo you were likely to have a heat stroke from wearing heavy clothes in such muggy and humid weather, which is why we didn't venture into the jungle in this gear, and the reason why we were forced into our huts until the rain passed.

As I finished putting my suit on I heard the delivery truck pull up, honking loudly to notify all of us. I frantically began searching for my rain hat in the chaotic mess I like to call my clothes. A few minutes later someone began pounding on my door again. "I know, I know! I'm coming!" I shouted, still searching for that blasted hat. The knocking sound erupted through the room again a few moments later. "Enrique, I'll be out in a second!" I huffed, getting up off my knees to answer the door and ease his mind. "I just need a minute to find my hat!" I hastily opened the door.

I stood there in my doorway lamely for several moments, unable to fully grasp what the heck was really happening. Waiting in the pouring rain and adorning a small smirk across her lips was none other than Helga Pataki. The two large duffle bags she carried on her shoulders dropped to the muddy ground and we continued to silently stare at each other. My jaw hung open several inches as I attempted to come up with something to say, but I was finding myself literally speechless. She took a step closer until we were mere inches from one another, her soaking wet hand reached out and touched the side of my face. Even through the intense rainfall I saw the tears falling down her rosy cheeks. I lifted my hand and returned her tender gesture, carefully cupping her cheek and rubbing my thumb across it. In this moment no words were needed between us… seeing her standing in the pouring rain and recreating a moment we both remembered all too well spoke volumes in itself. Both of us took the final step forward as we enveloped each other in a tight hug. Her face buried into my shoulder for several moments before resting her cheek against mine, softly rubbing her nose against it before pulling away to look at my face…

"_Hey Arnold.._" she whispered.

* * *

**The end?**

**Don't murder me for leaving it on a cliffhanger! Haha… here's the deal, I had THREE endings picked out for this story: A happy one, a (somewhat) sad one, and a "cliffhanger" ending…. With the help of my S.F.A.M (sista from another mista) Kpfan72491, she picked the random number that decided their fate (thus, the cliffhanger!) **

**BUT, I recommend you don't freak the freak out (haha) the epilogue will answer any remaining questions you may have. (Lets face it, if I had left the story as-is, it would considerably be the worst story EVER! Lol) So do not fear my friends, the epilogue will put your mind at ease! Don't give up on me! Lol.**

**As for any spelling mistakes/errors in this chapter... it's 3am... nuff said. XD I'm going to read over it again tomorrow and fix stuff if I have to. (thank you for your patience you guys! Seriously!)**


	21. The American dream

**Seeing this story come to an end is bittersweet. Honestly, this has become my little baby. I was honored and happy to bring my odd sense of humor and random dialogue to the world of Hey Arnold. You've all made this an AMAZING experience, and this story will definitely not be the end of my HA! fan fictions. And as you've learned about me so far… you never know what'll happen next ;)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold!**

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_**(**Three Years Later**)**_

**Helgas POV:**

When I was a kid, I always believed I wanted the American dream; Boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love. Boy and girl get married and start a family… boy and girl live happily ever after in their middle class home behind a white picket fence. What I didn't understand at the time, was that life didn't always follow that seemingly simple formula without it's hiccups along the way. Some people manage to fall in and out of love hundreds of times before finally finding 'the one'. And 'love and marriage' doesn't always come before 'the baby carriage'… There are no shortcuts or easy paths… in life, there never is. There's heartbreak and tears, and people willing to tear you down at the drop of a dollar. It's just how we are as a society. So how _do_ you find a happily ever after? Is there really such a thing? No matter how old you become or how much life experience you have, there isn't one way to cheat the system I like to call _life_.

But as people, we _do_ have the power to change our fate in the world. Years ago, I changed my fate in ways that I never thought I could. I spent the most magical summer of my life in the heart of a humid rainforest, digging myself out of ankle deep sludge and sweating off half my body weight…. And I would do it all over again if given the chance. When Arnold left for San Lorenzo after our high school graduation, I pondered for several hours about my _own_ future… what I was really doing and where I was going. I was planning on spending my summer in Hillwood, cursing the world. It was only then that it dawned on me… _I had to go to him_. There wasn't a single doubt in my mind that I belonged in San Lorenzo with him, helping him with something he held so close to his heart. So the very next day I bought a passport and took a little trip to the doctors office, and 5 inoculations in my ass later… I was physically ready to leave the country. All I had to do was wait on my passport to come in the mail… and inform my parents and Phoebe that I was leaving. Big Bob was ecstatic to be rid of me, and gladly fronted the airfare cash while Miriam on the other hand thought San Lorenzo was in Canada… And Phoebe? She simply offered me a friendly hug and told me to "_go get him tiger!_". Two weeks later when the passport came through, I was at the airport and already buying my ticket.

I remember it was raining in San Lorenzo on that very first day. A rain unlike anything I had ever experienced before. It was heavy and harsh upon my skin and left a slight sting, my breath coming out as a hiss with each drop. I found a man loading up a truck full of boxes and showed him the address where Arnold was, to which he informed me he was going there with the supplies in mere moments. My stomach was going cartwheels and I felt like I was going to pass out. He kindly offered me a ride to the campsite and I hopped into his cargo truck. When the campsite came into view it finally became real that I had just left my entire life back in the United States, and was entering the complete unknown. I thanked the man for the ride and stepped out into the harsh rainfall, soaking me through and through in less than thirty seconds. A man in a large camouflage jacket approached me and asked who I was, and I quickly explained I was here for Arnold. He must have sensed my nervousness, because he didn't question me any further. He simply said Arnolds hut was the first one on the right, and with a small smile he wished me luck. After several minutes of pounding on the door, and Arnold demanding 'Enrique' to hold on… he opened the door. He was wearing rain gear from the neck down and a look of complete and utter shock etched on to his face. I couldn't think of something witty or charming to say, so we continued to stare for several moments. I took a step forward, our bodies just centimeters away from one another, and reached out to cup his cheek. My eyes welt up with tears and several of them began falling down my own cheeks, his hand suddenly reached out to touch my face before we finally crumbled and pulled each other into a bone crushing hug. I pulled away after what felt like an eternity, simply saying "_hey Arnold.._" Those two words changed everything. All bets were off, and my life was in my own hands. All that mattered was that Arnold was in my life again, and we had each other for the time being. We spent the entire summer scoping out the jungle in search of La Sombra and navigating his fathers path. It was far from pleasant conditions to say the least, and several times I wondered why I was doing this. But when I would lay down at night on our cot in the crook of Arnolds arm, listening to his melodic heartbeat… I knew I had made the right choice.

As quickly as summer had started, it ended just a quickly. The world beyond the jungle awaited my arrival, and there was no escaping the reality. Arnold and I were forced to say our goodbyes at the small San Lorenzo airstrip, crying in each others arms. Neither of us could guarantee the next time we'd see each other again, or if we actually would get the chance. With my departure we inevitably were forced to admit our romantic relationship was no longer a possibility, and we broke up… for the final time. We shared one last kiss beneath the San Lorenzo skies before I finally boarded my plane that would take me back… back to a world without him.

Cut to three years later. Beyond all the drama and angst, heartbreak and longing… I'm still alive, and you know what? Life didn't turn out so bad. Of course I missed Arnold like crazy for well over 6 months into my college career. We wrote every three weeks and tried calling once a month. Slowly over time our letters and phone calls eventually become rare to basically nonexistent, it was an inevitable fate that we both knew was coming. We had physically and mentally moved on in our lives, and came to accept our fate… and I was okay with it.

"_Helga_!" the faint knock of my annoying roommate echoed through the bedroom.

"I'm busy!" I roared. The door handle moved back and forth several times in a vain attempt to open it. "It's locked, dummy." I smirked.

"_Why did you lock it? Geez.. I wasn't going to bug you!_"

"You're bugging me now!" I huffed, tossing my books aside. "I have to finish my paper on the contemporary postmodern Marxist theory. Try bugging me in a few hours." I felt kind of guilty about lying… since I had been staring blankly at the ceiling for the past hour and completely avoiding my stupid term paper that was due next week.

"_You are possibly the worst roommate ever!_" a loud audible huff could be heard through the wooden door.

"Would ya quit your whining? Crimeny." I scooted off the bed and stood in front of the door. "What's the magic word?" I decided to milk this irritation for all it was worth.

"_Open the door before I get peeved._"

"That works." I shrugged, finally opening the door. "Can I help you?" I leaned against the doorframe, staring expectantly.

"You know, when we agreed to share an apartment together I thought it would be a lot less… _aggravating_." a hand gently nudged me back into the room. "We have to leave soon. Get ready."

"Well.. Aren't you testy today?" I smirked.

"Helga… Just get ready." another glance of irritation was sent in my direction.

"Come here" I motioned with my index finger as I plopped down on the queen sized bed. "You're kind of cute when you're angry."

"You're really going there? _Now?_" a set of legs stopped at the edge of the bed.

"We've got time." I glanced over that the clock. "Come here." I repeated.

"What makes you think I'm in the mood?"

"Do bears shit in the woods?"

The springs of the mattress squeaked as another body slowly joined me on the bed, leaning me forward slightly. "You are such a freak Pataki."

"If you're barely just discovering this.." I grabbed a fistful of my shirt, slowly pulling it over my head. "_you've got a lot more to learn football head._"

"_Then teach me_.." his voice dropped down an octave just before he leaned in and kissed me.

Are you confused yet? Yeah.. I was too about a year and a half ago when I received a surprise football headed visitor at my dorm room one night. I didn't know if I should welcome him with open arms or slam the door in his face. It was all so unexpected and surprising. Arnold was first to initiate a long and drawn out hug, both of us breathing in a long sigh of relief. All of the distance and separation felt like it had never touched us, like I had just seen him yesterday. When our tearful reunion was complete we were left with a thick layer of awkward. We had spent so long apart and neither of us were experts in this subject, and I had yet to hear the reason why he came back to the US. When all was said and done we decided to try being friends again, in vain of course. I was still very much attracted to him, if not more since our summer in San Lorenzo. We spent a lot of time talking after that. He told me about his adventures after I left, and about the people he met along the way… but more importantly… he had found out what happened to his parents.

When the green eyed people discovered Arnold's presence in San Lorenzo, they immediately sought out for him. He was the first and only person allowed to be in their presence. He says it's because he's viewed as some sort of deity to them… I think he's full of hot air, personally. The green eyes informed him that Miles and Stella's plane _did_ make it to San Lorenzo, despite the rumors. On their first night, they created a new base camp deep in the heart of the jungle. Two weeks into their mission they managed to deliver the medicine the green eyed people. That very same night they were ambushed by a group of river pirates, run by La Sombra. They burned their plane and took them as prisoners, threatening death if they refused to reveal where the sacred gem of the green eyed people was being held. Like the selfless people they were, Miles and Stella refused to reveal where the green eyed people were and vowed to protect them with their lives… and they did until the very end. After several weeks of starving them as torture, La Sombra grew tired of their lack of cooperation….. He ordered for them to be executed immediately. The green eyed people never actually witnessed their death, but after the gunshots were heard, several of them found La Sombras hideout. After years of feuding with the river pirates, the green eyes took the situation into their own hands… and they attacked in Miles and Stella's honor. La Sombra and his men were finally taken down in the long and strenuous battle. The green eyes then found Miles and Stella, taking them back to their hidden village and giving them a proper burial the deserved. I think Arnold had somehow found peace by actually seeing his parents final resting place. It broke my heart that he never got the chance to know his father and mother… but he insisted that their death wasn't in vain, and they were genuine heroes in his eyes. When he came back to Hillwood, his family had their own private ceremony to say their proper goodbyes, and like Arnold, his grandparents were genuinely proud of their son and daughter in law. And now that the truth was out, their lives could finally move forward…

"You know… I'd have to give that a 9.5" I rolled over on my side and watched Arnold put on a fresh set of clothes. "I think our neighbors heard us again!" I cackled.

"Why just a 9.5? If I recall correctly, you weren't complaining." he buttoned up his pants, smirking slightly.

"I would have given you a 10.. But you didn't snuggle." I stuck my bottom lip out.

"We didn't have time! We gotta go in less than ten minutes." he punctuated by pointing at his watch. When I refused to move, he slithered on top of me and kissed my forehead. "We'll cuddle later… I promise."

"Good boy!" I lightly slapped his cheek. "You know who wears the pants in this relationship."

"Yeah.." he grabbed my hand and examined it. "Me." he pointed to the diamond ring on my left hand.

"HA!" I snorted, pulling him closer to my face. "Just think… in seven months, I'll _own_ your sorry butt. We'll see who's laughing then."

The smirk on his face failed to disappear. "I'm not scared of you Helga… I never have been."

"Just _wait_ until I'm Mrs. Arnold…" a loud buzzing sound cut my sentence off, distracting us both.

Arnold grabbed his phone and read the message. "We gotta go Helga! We're _really_ going to be late if we don't hurry!" his hand wrapped around my wrist, effectively pulling me from the covers.

I grabbed a pair of jeans and a shirt, hastily throwing each item on. "Satisfied?"

"Yes.." he pulled me in for another kiss. "Lets go pick Phoebe and Gerald up at the airport. We've only got them for the weekend, so we better make the most of it."

"Yeah yeah… get the ants out of your pants football head. We have time to pick them up _and_ make our dinner reservations on time."

"I'm just excited!" he grabbed my jacket off the coat rack and assisted me into it before grabbing his own. "And besides… I don't want to miss my own birthday party.." he opened the front door and took off down the hallway. I grabbed my bag off the table and turned off the lights we had left on, scanning the room one last time.

I stood in the doorway of our apartment and took a deep breath before reaching for the final light switch. "_Yep.." _I smirked, clicking off the light. "_definitely not a supernova.."_ I closed the door behind me and took off after my giddy fiancé.

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**Fin.**

**=) lol**

**Okay, so some quick clarification.. Helga's last line was referring to chapter 10 (to which Arnold calls his relationships a 'supernova'.)**

**Anyhow, I genuinely hope you like how I chose to end it. I know I didn't really explain what Arnold was doing with his life, and frankly? I have no clue! Lol.. I'll leave it to your imaginations!**

**And yes, Arnold was **_**willingly**_** going to his own birthday party. You didn't read wrong. Lol.. I think many of you can understand WHY he's okay with it now.**

**As for his parents dying… seriously you guys? Did you think they'd be alive in the jungle for 17 years and nobody would find them? Lol.. I hope nobody is too bummed out about it. I was being realistic. XD**

**Sooooo, in conclusion; I hope everyone enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! I love doing this, and I will definitely be back SOON! Brand new story in-hand!**

**Until then!**

**-ThriLLer89**


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